A Path of His Own
by CrapsterZ
Summary: His parents' deaths saved his life. Sirius' death saved his freedom. Harry sets out to face Voldemort on his own terms and without the meddling of Dumbledore. HP/FD/NT
1. Emancipation

**A/N: **_I'll just get some things out of the way first, since I know some of you probably have questions._

_Yes, I am reposting this fanfic. The reason is simply because the previous one was a rushed piece of work which I didn't really plan out properly, and I felt that I didn't do justice to the rest of the plot I had planned. I went back to the drawing (or writing) board and planned out a new starting arc to this story._

_I know many of you have suggested simply working on the fic a few paragraphs at time until I have a whole chapter up and thus keep a regular posting schedule. Unfortunately it is difficult for me as firstly, there are just a lot of things to juggle (My GCSE 'A' Level exams, church, among other things). Secondly, while I have the rough plot for this story worked out, all the sub-plots and exact details aren't set in stone. This is mostly due to the fact that my brain works in overdrive and I get more ideas than I can process. So the actual contents of the chapters tend to change until I work out what fits and what doesn't. As much as I would like to keep a weekly update going as much as possible, I'd rather upload a chapter I've put my heart and soul into than just rush it out for the sake of sticking to a deadline. _

_The pairings remains the same, though I plan to take my time introducing the rest of the plot. I am not sure exactly how many chapters I'll take, since I don't really 'plot' how much to include in which chapter. I just write the story at what I feel is a natural pace. _

_Unfortunately this also means no smut for a really long time, possibly, so if you're waiting for the lemons… the only thing I can offer you now is the right to scream at all the points where I can simply smack the smut in and did not do so and leave you to imagine the rest of the scene yourselves._

**Disclaimer: **You are reading this on a site hosting fanfiction, so if you think I'm claiming any ownership of Harry Potter, I'm not. Harry Potter belongs to JKR and be glad I'm not her, otherwise none of us would have been able to read the book as kids (or you would have read it and asked your parents some really frustrating questions)

_Now that all the boring stuff is out of the way…_

**Chapter 1: Emancipation**

_A flash of green light and a red-haired woman in front of him fell. A flash of green light and a young boy just a few older than he was fell. A flash of green light and a raven-haired man fell through an archway._

Harry Potter awoke in his bed at 4 Privet Drive. The memories of those who had died in front of his eyes haunted his dreams in the past week he had returned from Hogwarts. He had not left his room except when his hunger became too unbearable and every fiber of his body protested. The Dursleys had not checked on him at all, though the lack of his presence in the house often went unquestioned. The young wizard rose from his bed and headed to the bathroom to wash his face. With every step he took, the flash of green flashed before him again. If Voldemort had attempted a killing curse right there and then, Harry would have been none the wiser except for the sudden stopping of his heart.

Why had he insisted on going to the Department of Mysteries? He was an idiot for thinking Snape would have revealed anything to Umbridge in his presence and should have waited. He was an idiot for not mastering Occlumency. _That wasn't your fault, was it? Snape wasn't even bothering to help you learn it properly! Dumbledore hadn't even bothered to check on your progress. Where was he the past year? The only time he talked with you properly was when he told about the prophecy. _A voice in his head raged as it looked for someone else to blame. _Speaking of which, the old fool knew all along! He knew, for the past fifteen years of your life, you had to be the one to kill Voldemort. Did he teach you to fight the most powerful Dark Lord of the last century? No, you attended lessons as per normal. As if any lesson in Hogwarts would have taught you to fight Voldemort in a duel!_

Harry shook his heads as he shoved the traitorous thoughts out of his head. Was Voldemort trying to sow seeds of doubt in his mind once again? He returned to his room, lying on his bed in a vain attempt to get some sleep. A flutter of wings announced an owl's arrival. Harry rose from his bed, and took the letter that was attached to its leg. He flipped it over and saw the Gringotts seal. Why would they send him a letter?

_Dear Mister Potter,_

_You have my condolences for the passing of one Lord Sirius Orion Black, last remaining heir of the House of Black. After the announcement of his death and the following acquittal of all charges held against him, the Black vault had once again been released, and according to Sirius' last will and testament, you are hereby requested to come to Gringotts at the earliest possible convenience._

_Lord Black has left some very specific instructions in his will, and as per his final instructions, the will is to be read to you and you alone before the rest of the beneficiaries are contacted. He has also informed us of the possibility that you will be under watch at the location of your current residence, and hence we have provided a portkey set to activate on "Padfoot"._

_Regards  
>Ragnok<br>Head of Gringotts Bank, London Branch_

Harry blinked at the letter, hoping he was wide awake and not hallucinating from the abuse he had inflicted on his body the past week. Deciding that the only way to find out was to use the portkey, Harry took the ring enclosed in the letter and whispered, "Padfoot", realizing too late he might have just walked into a trap.

Landing painfully on the black marble floors of Gringotts silenced his concerns as a goblin stood in front of him as if fully expect Harry to land at the very spot he had. With a quick motion the goblin signaled Harry to follow him, choosing not to comment on the wizard's choice of wardrobe. Realizing this, the young boy was about to open his mouth to request for a cloak or something to cover himself with, when the goblin tossed one his way. Wondering if goblins could use Legilimency, Harry stepped into a large oval office where two goblins stood guard in full suits of armor by the door, and a very authoritative figure sat at a desk on the opposite side. Taking a seat at the desk, Harry wondered if there was some goblin formality he had just ignored.

"There is no need to fear a lack of etiquette, Mister Potter, we are well aware that most wizards who grew up in the Muggle world are often ignorant of cultures of magical races. Though, the fiercest of my kind might argue, is no different from the treatment most wizards show to us goblins." Ragnok answered in response to Harry's expression. Once again the teenage boy wondered if all goblins were born Legilimens.

"I do apologize for rousing you in the dead of night, although your godfather had explicitly requested us to do so. I have here his last will and testament." Ragnok passed Harry a pile of parchment, which was entirely blank. Harry looked at the goblin quizzically before Ragnok continued, "Lord Black placed a safety phrase on the parchment should anyone other than you arrive to read the will. I am to simply tell you 'Marauder' and leave you to figure out the phrase on your own."

Without missing a beat, Harry knew exactly what to say. "_I solemnly swear I am up to no good._" Immediately ink filled the parchment as Sirius' will revealed itself. His voice spoke from the parchment, taking Harry by surprise.

_I, Sirius Orion Black, being of sound mind and body, declare this to be my last will and testament. If you're reading this, Harry, then I am sorry to have to leave you to face Voldemort alone, although I hope that you might be reading this after my body was discovered in bed with two young witches at the ripe old age of eighty, and simply forgot to make changes to this will. _Harry chuckled a little, hearing Sirius joke like that again was a welcome relief after a week of grieving. Only Sirius Black could make something like his death a joke and make a comedy out of a will reading.

_I hereby leave Harry James Potter all of the Black family possessions and declare him to be my rightful heir as head of House Black, which aside from your immediate emancipation when you turn sixteen means little else. While I know you would rather have me back than anything I could possibly give, it's all I have to offer. I also leave to you my motorbike and my album of photos with James and Lily. They're in my room at Grimmauld Place under my bed._

_I have indicated several other beneficiaries in my will, and I leave it up to your discretion when they are to be notified, along with any additional requests or instructions you would like to make of the goblins before they carry it out. You will know my reason for doing so at the end of the will._

_To Remus Lupin, the last surviving Marauder and the one man I always wished I could have done something for, I leave a hundred thousand Galleons and a property owned by the Black House of his choosing. It is my sincere wish that he may finally have a place to call home and live in peace unbothered by his condition. This comes with the condition, that you, Moony, get married to a witch and have kids! For goodness sake it's about time, you self-pity git, to realize that out there in the world somewhere is a witch who is perfectly happy to be in love with a werewolf and be married to him. Never let your afflictions stay in the way of your happiness. Harry, if and when the war is over, I hold you responsible for ensuring Lupin gets settled down to a life of his own. You have my permission to use the Imperius or Cruciatus Curse to force him to do so and should the Ministry come after you please keep a copy of this will and shove it up their sodding noses._

_To my niece Nymphadora Tonks, who can no longer do anything about my use of her first name, I leave a hundred thousand Galleons and hereby restore her family back to their rightful branch on the Black family tree. It is my hope that she and her family will show Harry the warmth of a loving home he never had._

_To Arthur and Molly Weasley, I leave fifty thousand Galleons. No, you may not refuse this sum. It is my token of gratitude and appreciation for taking care of Harry when and where I could not. I am sure Lily and James would both thank you greatly for the joy you've brought to their son as well. My only condition is that Harry may find a second home with the Weasleys which I am sure is more than agreeable to all of you._

_To Fred and George Weasley, I leave ten thousand Galleons and all the notes of the Marauders in my possession. Should the war not be over when this will is read, then let it be known to them that I am entrusting them the task of making sure people will still have a reason to laugh and find what levity they can in these dark times. If the war is over, well, sod it, we could all do a few laughs whatever the season of the year is._

_To Ronald Weasley, I leave ten thousand Galleons. Though I sincerely believe that one cannot put a price on friendship, I am sure Harry will agree that this sum does not do justice to how much of a friend you've been to him the past few years, but I am sure your mother would raise me from the dead just to have a few words with me if I ever gave you anything more. Remember that wealth and fame can never buy one a loyal friend. James, Remus and I would have buried bodies for each other, hence we chose our company wisely, save for a certain rat. I would have gladly fought at James' side on the night he and Lily died, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I hope your friendship with Harry will be the same._

_To Hermione Granger, I leave ten thousand Galleons and all the books in the Black library in the basement of 12 Grimmauld Place. I'm pretty sure if I left the books to Harry they'll never see the light of day again, so I leave them to you and hope that you will enjoy discovering new knowledge within their pages. That is, of course, unless they are on the top shelf or in a hidden corner, in which case the books are either Dark or not suitable for minors and I suggest you don't touch them. Torch them if you wish. Once again, your friendship to Harry is worth more than is within my ability to give. Cherish every moment you have together, as I did with James, Remus and Lily. You will face death together, but know that with your last breath comes only an eternity to spend together with the ones you love. I thank both you and Ron for sticking with Harry thus far and should he ever choose to leave you alone so you won't be in danger (as his father often did while fighting Voldemort!) please make sure that you will be there beside him even if you have to place a Body Bind on every professor in Hogwarts and break every rule to do so. Hermione, don't roll your eyes and Dumbledore, if you're listening, well, sod it._

_To Narcissa Malfoy, I leave five thousand Galleons under the condition that she renounce Voldemort under oath and reject her Dark Mark. Additionally, she must renounce her marriage to Lucius Malfoy whom I am sure would never agree to the above terms anyway. I hereby leave the right to reject or deny this request to the new Lord Black._

_To Draco Malfoy, while I am sorely tempted to simply leave you a Knut and instruct the goblins to insert it up your rectum with a Permanent Sticking Charm, it would not be fair to your mother for me to offer her a way out of the life she has found herself in and not do the same for her son. Renounce the Dark Lord and never take up the Dark Mark, and you will be left the same amount as your mother to be held in trust until you come of age. Should you attempt to take the gold and join Voldemort later, however, the inheritance is considered null and void. I am sure that Harry would not even need me to instruct him to make your life excruciatingly painful for such an act as well._

_Signed,  
>Sirius Orion Black<br>Former Head of House Black_

The will ended there, but Ragnok gestured for Harry to lift up the first piece of the parchment, under which was a second piece which was now filling with ink.

_This second half of my will is addressed directly to you, Harry, and will not be read to anyone else. While it pains me to have to write this and that you have to find out such information shortly after my death, I fear that I must do so for your well-being._

_Fifteen years ago, when Voldemort killed your parents, I was supposed to be your guardian. Should the Death Eaters have gotten to me, Lupin would have become next in line to care for you. Dumbledore, however, convinced me that your parents had decided to leave you in his care and that he had put measures in place to ensure your safety till were of age, as he was certain Voldemort would return._

_You know by now that I hunted Peter Pettigrew down and was locked away in Azkaban for a crime I did not commit. I am afraid I must apologize for being so rash and not ensuring you were safe first. This is where I am afraid the shattering of your world begins. I always believed Dumbledore could not arrange for me to be tried by the Wizengamot because there was no evidence to absolve me and Peter Pettigrew was still at large. In the few years I was free, however, I soon learned the truth. He had simply wanted me out of the way because I would never have stood for leaving you with your aunt for fifteen years of abuse at their hands. Lupin was convinced by Dumbledore that it was the only way to keep you safe, and while he would have fought Dumbledore as fiercely as I did, he let his rational side win._

_While Lupin met you in your third year, however, it was apparent enough to both of us that Dumbledore had meddled in your life further than was reasonable and justifiable. Lupin detected magical blocks on you placed by Dumbledore, and while the Headmaster assured him that it was only to ensure your magic could develop at a more natural pace, our trust in him was shattered when your fifteen years old and still had those blocks placed on you. We confronted Dumbledore only to be told that it was because it had to be you who killed Voldemort. We could kill him a thousand times and he would never truly be slain unless you were the one to do it. Before that, however, were things that needed to be done before he could truly be defeated by you._

_Still, it doesn't explain why he didn't simply train you to fight him and win. It doesn't explain why you're well into your fifth year and Hogwarts but still have a block limiting your abilities. Dumbledore has Lupin out courting the werewolves while I am stuck in Grimmauld Place to ensure my safety. At times we wonder if he's not simply trying to keep us from discovering the truth._

_Dumbledore may have the best of intentions to keep you safe, neither Remus nor I doubt that fact. We disagree with his methods. Voldemort got to your parents even though they were well protected, and no matter how infallible he thinks his plan is, you'll have to learn to fight him someday. I doubt he would tell you anything if you confronted him. My only advice is to handle things the Marauder way – on your own terms._

_If you can, forge a path of your own. Let no one tell you what you should be doing unless they're the ones you trust to hold a knife to your throat and not draw a drop of blood. Your parents died because they trusted the wrong man. I would be doing them a great disservice if I did not warn you about the same._

_With love  
>Padfoot<em>

Anger welled up in Harry's heart as he heard Sirius' confession. It all made sense, now, Harry realized. The reason why he had managed to get past all the defense around the Philosopher's Stone in his first year, why Dumbledore had not done more to prepare him after Riddle's return in his fourth year. A knot clenched in his stomach as the realization dawned on him that Dumbledore might have very allowed Sirius to fall at the Department of Mysteries in order to keep his secret. Lupin had his doubts but since he was kept so far away from Harry, presented no threat.

The young wizard decided that he would do as Sirius suggest, to find a way ahead himself and damn the consequences. "Thank you, Ragnok. If there is nothing else…" Harry's voice trailed off as he found his anger spilling out towards the goblin, and silenced himself before he did something he'd regret. He remembered Hagrid's words to him the first time he stepped into Gringotts.

"Aside from the time and manner in which the other beneficiaries listed here will be informed, if you'd like, we could help you remove the magic blocks placed upon you."

Harry was surprised. "I was under the impression goblins did not offer generosity to wizards in general."

Ragnok nodded. "We don't. We do, however, remember what it was like years ago when the Dark Lord was in power. We would be mere animals should he come to power. Helping you benefits us as well. I cannot say this is entirely goodwill on my part. We are not helping Wizardkind, _Lord Black_, we are aiding _you_."

Ragnok produced another stack of papers. "These are the papers of emancipation your godfather mentioned. I am sure Albus Dumbledore would attempt to stop you from signing them, but unfortunately he is not present to do so." Harry took a quill and signed along the paper.

"With that, you are now both heir to the House of Black and Potter. Your parents did leave a will, though they stipulated that you would be left everything they had. Now that you are of age, however, you have free access to the Potter vault as well." Ragnok produced two keys and passed them to Harry. "We will also not inform Dumbledore of any transfers you make to either vault any longer."

"Meaning…" Harry's voice was shaking with anger.

"Yes, I am afraid he has been keeping track of your finances all this time, though we first thought he was simply holding it in trust. After hearing Sirius Black's will, however, we have deemed him to have abused that trust and will henceforth keep him out of the loop." Ragnok replied with a nod. "If you will follow me this way, Lord Potter-Black, we can bring you to the chamber where we shall help remove the blocks."

8-8-8

Twenty minutes later Harry stood in a circular room. Though he lacked any knowledge of architecture, he had the impression that the room was built much like a magical bunker of sorts. The door he had passed through to enter the chamber was extremely thicker, even thicker than the doors at Hogwarts, and he wasn't sure how thick the walls were, though it was not unlikely that the goblins had simply built the room in the middle of thick rock layers.

A familiar looking goblin walked in as Harry continued to pace the room, nervous at what the ritual entailed. "You're Griphook, aren't you?" Harry asked. "You were…"

"The one who showed you to the vault the first time you came into our halls, yes." Griphook replied. "I am the one responsible for the Potter vault before you came of age. Ragnok has informed me of what transpired and his promise of aid to you. I must admit I am surprised. He does not offer help to wizards easily, not even if they are supposed to stop Dark Lords." Griphook walked up to Harry and produced a small bag. "This is a coin pouch. It is keyed to respond you and you alone. Should you require gold, simply concentrate on the amount you need and it will appear within the pouch. Of course, the same amount will be taken from your vaults. For now it will only draw from the Potter vault, just to avoid any suspicion should Dumbledore look at the Black vaults. I take it you will be absent at the official will reading and that you would want him ignorant of this morning's events for as long as possible?" The young wizard nodded, prompting Griphook to produce two books. "This is the official records of all finances in the Potter and Black vaults, which only you will have access to, or anyone in your House should you grant them authority to do so. The second copy is one we will show to Dumbledore which will not reflect any spending outside of what you normally use for school supplies."

Harry raised an eyebrow at the extent to which the goblins had planned the whole deception. "It is not the first time we helped clients evade prying eyes, though you are the first in a very long time to be offered such services at no cost." Griphook answered his unasked question. "Now, there is something that Ragnok would like me to convey to you."

"Your mother apparently left some very specific instructions in her will which was made known only to Ragnok. Apparently she managed to befriend him, which is saying something for a witch, especially so if it is the leader of the goblin nation." Ignoring the young boy's look of surprise, Griphook continued. "Your mother had left a journal in the Potter vault addressed to you. It was stipulated in the will that you would come into possession of it once you were of age. I shall retrieve on your behalf and deliver it to you here once the ritual is completed. Speaking of which, do you need me to explain the ritual?"

Harry nodded again, both to indicate he understood Griphook's instructions and to ask the goblin to continue. "Magic blocks work much like ancient curses placed on tombs or ruins, keeping magic in check over time. The main difference is that most magic blocks are placed with age or time limits. This allows children with exceptionally powerful magical cores to grow safely without endangering themselves with bouts of uncontrolled accidental magic, as well as the transport and imprisonment of dangerous criminals to Azkaban preventing them from attempting to escape. Now, the ritual we are about to perform is normally used by Curse Breakers to safely disarm magical traps and ancient curses safely. They can then channel the magic elsewhere or release it in controlled amounts so that no one gets injured."

"One of our Curse Breakers will be by shortly to conduct the ritual. Firstly, magic blocks are usually removed after a stipulated time or when the subject comes to a certain age, or when the person who placed the block removes it of their own volition. Failing that, one would normally go to St Mungo's to have the blocks removed by a healer. Of course, we do not have that luxury since there will be paperwork involved and there is always the issue of keeping the healer silent. A Curse Breaker can do the same ritual since it is not much different from their work, but since this is not their usual scope of work you must understand the risks involved, which is why you are now in this chamber instead of Ragnok's office."

"The ritual itself does not take too long, but in the interest of ensuring you are able to return home without arousing suspicion as soon as possible Ragnok has allowed the use of this room. There is also the possibility that your magic may end up exploding out, and with the amount of secrecy we are trying to keep, this is best place to do so without anyone outside detecting anything out of the ordinary."

Harry nodded, unsure if all this information would last past the ritual's completion. Griphook made to leave the room, which puzzled Harry. The goblin chuckled knowing what Harry was about to ask.

"Mister Potter, I am a banker, not a Curse Breaker." He left the room and Harry could see him waving someone in. The Curse Breaker conducting the ritual walked in and Harry did a double take. Either the goblins were pulling a prank on him, or fate had a very strange sense of humor. He stared the blond witch in front of him.

"Fleur?"

An equally surprised French witch stared at the raven-haired wizard before her. "Harry?"

8-8-8

_Well, that's it for chapter one! Next chapter, Harry goes through the ritual and reconnects with his mother._

_Once again, R&R and let me know what you think!_

_-CrapsterZ-_


	2. Rebirth

**Disclaimer: No, I still do not own Harry Potter. Unless Santa sees fit to give me a very good present this year, I probably won't. Seeing as how I'm not exactly good boy, probably won't for some time.**

**Chapter 2: Rebirth**

Fleur looked surprised just as much as Harry was. It looked like both Ragnok and Griphook had not told her anything at all about what had transpired. He understood it to be leaving the choice in his hands, as they clearly did not wish more people to know the whole story than was necessary.

"Harry?" Fleur asked, as if there could be some other raven-haired boy with a lightning bolt scar on his forehead, who also happened to know her name. She blinked a few times wondering if her eyes were deceiving her. Harry chuckled a little at the witch's surprise.

"I suppose you know another wizard who looks exactly like me?" Harry chuckled a little at his joke. "What happened to your accent?"

Fleur decided that this was not some elaborate trick and answered his question. "I've been taking lessons, though I did exaggerate my accent while I was at your school. I thought the boys would find it cute."

Harry grinned a little knowing that the snob he had met two years ago was every bit as insecure as he was during that year. "I see. Well, you never needed to do such a thing, Fleur. You're beautiful the way you are." He had not meant it as more than an honest assurance to her doubts, but noticing her blush realized how open to misinterpretation his words were. Before he could clarify, however, Fleur decided to hide her embarrassment by focusing on the task at hand.

"I was only told to come here and help whoever was in here to remove magic blocks placed on them. I suppose you wish this to be discreet?" Fleur asked. Harry nodded and the witch continued. "Then no one shall hear anything from me."

Thanking the goblins silently for their discretion, Harry smiled and accepted her promise. Fleur then began casting a spell with her wand, and a silver circle was drawn on the floor. The young wizard didn't miss a beat as he stepped into its center and Fleur grinned at his quick response. "You are much more confident than the boy who competed against me two years ago. You've grown too." Harry smiled at the compliment, but answered with a tone of regret in his voice. "Certain events have forced me to grow up." Fleur knew about Cedric's death, and remembering that it was Harry himself who brought the body back nodded silently. She simply motioned for him to sit down, which he did.

"You will begin to feel drowsy. Just close your eyes and follow the pull of the magic. You will be pulled towards your core, and while I remove the blocks I need to try and keep your magic under control. We don't know how much of your magic was restrained, so if it is too much to hold back let it out in small bursts. The circle will absorb most of it and let it bleed away. You will feel drained after the ritual is complete. Stay seated while you wake up. I will stay with you." Harry was already beginning to feel the spell take hold, and simply grunted his acknowledgement as his mind descended into darkness.

He awoke to a large labyrinth like structure, much like the maze he had to navigate in his final task. He took a tentative step forward, unsure if it was meant to go. As his foot landed on the ground, however, he felt a force beckoning him forward. Deciding that it was the pull Fleur had described, he simply walked towards the unknown force, changing directions only when he felt the pull weaken. Despite being an empty void devoid of light, Harry saw the walls clear and walked through the darkness as if he knew exactly where everything was. He noticed that the walls seemed to crumbling as cracks began to appear. Unsure if he would be safe, Harry hastened his pace until a large iron gate blocked his way. He tried to open it, but the gate refused to budge even after Harry pressed his whole weight against it. The walls were continuing to crumble, although the rest of the maze behind the gate seemed to remain intact. The gate suddenly disappeared as a large wave of silvery liquid rushed towards him.

_Is this… my magic?_ Harry wondered as he commanded the wave to stop, wondering if it was the right thing to do. His head began to pound as he realized there was a lot more magic than he could hold back and thus willed the silver ocean in front of him to slow its flow. He released the front of the wave and felt it rush past him and fade into the blackness. Repeating the process until all that was left was a silver river that layered the path at ankle height; Harry let the rest of it flow calmly away. He continued down the path as the walls continued to weaken. They seemed to be deteriorating faster now, and entire sections would disappear every now and then, allowing Harry to simply travel in a straight line a good distance before he was forced to turn. A second gate blocked his path once again, Harry waited for it to disappear just like the first one. Remembering the sea of magic gushing from before, he wondered if he could command his magic before the gate disappeared, allowing him to better release the magic in bursts.

Nothing responded to him from beyond gate. Puzzled, Harry examined the gate and realized the labyrinth was the magical block, while the gates were the holding his magic suppressed. He waited patiently before the gate swung open and the silver sea came raging again. The torrent of silvery water seemed to be even greater in volume and velocity than before, and Harry found himself having to release larger bursts of his magic in order to keep it from overwhelming him. He was unsure if he could drown in his own magic, but he reminded himself that Fleur would be the one receiving the full blast of his magic if he could not keep it restrained. Once his magic had calmed back down to the same level as before, Harry decided to let it flow free on its own and walked past the second gate.

There were no more walls, this time, only a lush forest. Wondering if he would be able to find a way out if he was lost, Harry continued walking to where he felt the pull was the strongest. He arrived at the edge of a cliff, where a great waterfall stood. The flow of the water was held in check by a huge wall of rock at the bottom, serving as a giant dam. Harry watched as the rocks began to tumble away and leave holes in the dam, allowing his magic to flow once again. _Fleur must be removing this block at a slower pace. Is she tired or just being safe?_ Harry wondered as he tried his best to keep the flow of magic under control. He knew that dams were easily compromised once there was a single breach, and the water flow would soon enlarge it until the entire dam collapsed and huge crashing torrent would race down the river and destroy any settlements along the bank. Certain that the same would happen unless he held his magic at bay, Harry slowed down the gush of his magic until the rock wall disappeared entirely and his magic was flowing gently once more. He felt a jerk as a new force seemed to pull him upwards until he surfaced from the deepest recesses of his magical core and awoke to find Fleur smiling at him, panting heavily.

"_Three _layers of blocks? Harry, whoever placed them was terribly afraid of your power. Most wizards would only place one." Fleur managed through her deep breaths. Harry felt his head spinning and stayed on the floor. "That was far more tiring than I thought it would be."

Harry chuckled. "So, since we're both winded, why don't we use this time to simply catch up?"

They spent the next hour recuperating as Fleur recounted her work as a Curse Breaker after she had graduated from Beauxbatons, and Harry told her about his fifth year and everything that transpired, including Sirius' death and what he was doing in Gringotts at such an ungodly hour. He had left out the prophecy as he did not wish to scare her, at least not until she was ready. Fleur was quite livid once Harry was done talking.

"How did all this go unnoticed? In France he would be arrested, regardless of past glories!" Fleur ranted as Harry found himself thinking about how attractive she looked even while angry. Giving himself a mental slap and cursing his raging hormones, he replied flatly. "Well, the Minister here seems quite content to bury his head in the sand. If he's denying Voldemort's return despite recent events, I'm sure someone like Dumbledore would be able to hide all this from him. He's the great symbol of light to Britain, not many people would think otherwise of him. I certainly did not until just a little more than an hour ago."

"Well, thank you for sharing this with me, Harry." Fleur smiled once more, and nodding at Griphook as the goblin entered with a leather-bound journal in his hands.

"Mister Potter, here is the journal your mother left you. Now, I should inform you that you are now in possession of a rather substantial amount of gold, along with stocks in several businesses in the magical world. Should I consolidate all of them for you?"

"That would be great, Griphook. Though try to keep it simple because I haven't the foggiest clue how to run a business."

"I believe Ragnok has been handling the finer points of the investments personally, including thwarting attempts by the Minister to seize the Potters' assets."

Harry's anger came back with a vengeance. "That man has been trying to get at my parents' gold?"

"Cornelius Fudge is guilty of many things, Harry. He is blinded by power and wealth. He enjoys the benefits of his office while shouldering none of the burdens. Much the opposite of your parents, I must say. You've obviously heard rumors of Death Eaters bribing their way out of Azkaban." Ragnok's voice joined Griphook's as he entered the chamber. He gave a gentle smile, or what resembled such a thing for a goblin, to Harry. "We have quite the number of documents here to put him in a rather uncompromising position. He has tried to take away some of that power from us during his term in office. If you are going to fight this war, Mister Potter, I suggest replacing him with someone more willing to fight the war alongside you."

"It's Harry, to both of you, please. Are you suggesting I stage a coup against Fudge?"

Ragnok's smile was more menacing at this. "We have the evidence, but not the position to back things up. You have the position but not the evidence. I would not attempt to convince you Gringotts would not benefit from Fudge's removal, but I offer you this only because you are prepared to do what is necessary. I've seen that much in your eyes tonight."

Turning to Fleur, Ragnok's voice was instantly replaced with authority. "Miss Delacour, I hope you understand the sensitivity of the information you are privy to, and will repeat it to no one. Is that understood?"

The French witch nodded her head and replied, "Of course, Director."

Ragnok nodded his acknowledgement. "Very well, then I suppose I can entrust you with keeping watch over him while he is here? Both Griphook and I have other duties as well, and will be unable to accompany him all the time while he is here. As of this moment you are placed on a period of recuperation after sustaining some injuries on a prior task, and will be out of contact while you visit your family during the period of recuperation." The blonde nodded once again.

"Ragnok, if I may?" Fleur spoke, addressing the goblin. A wave of his hand told Fleur she had permission to speak her mind. "All this secrecy is unlikely to hold for long if a Legilimens should try to poke into Harry's mind. As a Curse Breaker I am trained in Occlumency, and I doubt anyone would try it on you or Griphook, but I am certain Harry is unable to do so. He told me exactly what he found out this morning and I would not put it past his Headmaster to use Legilimency on Harry. Even if he does not know Harry has been warned of his godfather's concerns, he may well discover the information by accident."

Ragnok looked at the witch, with an expression that told Harry the goblin was both impressed by Fleur's assessment and annoyed that she had caught something he missed. "Very well, then I shall place you in charge of teaching him Occlumency. I see no need to involve any one else outside of the four of us."

"It will be my pleasure." Fleur agreed with a smile at Harry.

"That is all for now, Griphook, Miss Delacour. Harry, if I may have a word with you in private before you leave?"

Harry stayed behind as the Griphook and Fleur left the room. "The late Lord Black's will be read to the parties mentioned in three days' time. I am sure Dumbledore would ask you not to come, but if you wish I can arrange for you to be present but hidden."

"Sure, thanks a lot Ragnok, for everything." Harry replied. Remembering the contents of the will, he continued. "Though could you arrange for Narcissa Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange to be notified at a later date? I don't want to risk my friends getting hurt. Also, they are not to be told the contents of the will other than what relates to them. You may inform them of who succeeded Sirius as Head of the House of Black, but nothing else." Ragnok nodded, agreeing that it was prudent to do so.

"Ragnok, may I ask you something?" Harry asked, realizing just how ignorant of goblin customs he was. Fleur had spoken with a lot more formality. Ragnok sensed Harry's discomfort and simply waved off his doubts.

"You are one of the few wizards who actually bother about knowing our customs, and I would not hold something so trivial against you. Not when I owe your mother much."

"That's what I wanted to ask… Griphook told me you were friends with my mother, and I was wondering…"

"What happened for a witch to earn a goblin's trust?" Ragnok completed Harry's question for him. "She saved my life years ago, when Voldemort first rose to power. The Dark Lord demanded I relinquish all control of Britain's gold over to him. His followers came to attack Gringotts when I refused, and your mother saved my life and healed my injuries when most wizards would have left me to die and saved themselves. Your father was quite the fighter that night as well; he managed to keep five Death Eaters at bay while your mother got me to safety. They did not deserve their fate."

"I see a lot of them in you. Aside from physical resemblances, of course, which I am sure you are tired of hearing about." Ragnok managed to make his smile look less threatening this time, much to Harry's amusement. "Now their son walks in and requires help in finishing the work his parents started. I would be ungrateful, to say the least, to do anything less than offer him all the help I can give. We goblins believe all debts must be paid in full whether it is a debt of blood or a debt of kindness. I owe your parents the latter and the Dark Lord the former. I will see to it that both debts are repaid in kind."

Harry didn't know what else to do except extend his hand. Ragnok laughed at the innocent gesture and took it. "Thank you, Ragnok."

"No need, Mister Potter. As the leader of the goblin nation, I hereby declare that you have our unconditional aid any time you have need of it."

8-8-8

Fleur caught up to him just as he was leaving Gringotts. "Harry, I would like to know where you want to conduct your lessons. It is not safe for you to keep appearing at Gringotts."

"Uh, I don't have anywhere else… unless you want to come to house where I live." Harry suggested with a shrug. Fleur raised an eyebrow at the hesitation, and the young wizard realized how his words could be taken the wrong way. "Not that I'm propositioning you or anything, it's just that my relatives aren't exactly… _tolerant_ when it comes to magic."

"Okay, how about you bring me there now so I know where it is. The portkey Ragnok gave you should bring you back. Oh, and he also asked me to inform you that you may use it to return should you have anything you need from him."

Harry nodded as he took out the portkey and held it out for Fleur as he activated it and had them back in Privet Drive in an instant. She landed gracefully, as usual, while he landed much less so. She laughed at the sight. "Harry Potter can best a dragon on a broom, save two hostages from the lake and face You-Know-Who but cannot land from a Portkey."

"My body's a lot sharper when it's in danger of a variety of horrible fates. Unless someone placed a pike in the room while I was gone I'd doubt my landings are going to be smoother." The witch accompanying him laughed at that, but stopped abruptly as she noticed the state of the room he was in.

"You live in this _dump_?"

"Yeah, used to be the cupboard under the stairs but they've let me in since I started at Hogwarts." Fleur didn't know which was worse, the fact that he had been forced to live in a cupboard or the nonchalant way Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, dismissed such abuse.

"Dumbledore sent you to live with these people all this time? That man is horrible!" Harry shrugged at Fleur's outburst and just sat on his bed. "It's supposedly the safest place for me since Voldemort can't touch me here."

"He is the least of your worries here! Those Muggles are obviously abusing you! If the wizarding world found out…"

"The Muggles would kill me for bringing _my lot _into their affairs before anything happened to them." The same dismissive attitude was coming from Harry again. Fleur wondered if the Killing Curse he survived had somehow removed his self-preservation instincts.

"What is going on in here boy? What's with the bloody ruckus in the morning?" Vernon Dursley's voice called out irritably as the door opened and Fleur was standing rather exposed in the middle of Harry's room. "WHO THE RUDDY HELL IS THAT? YOU DARE BRING A WHORE HOME?"

Fleur's wand was out before Vernon could regret his words. Harry stepped between the two of them. "She is no whore, uncle Vernon, and I suggest you don't anger any more of _my lot_. Didn't work out the last time and she's no student either. She's just here because she's supposed to make sure I learn a few things over the summer."

"You are NOT practicing your magic in my house!" Vernon lashed out with a fist at Harry, sending the scrawny teenager flying to the floor at Fleur's feet. The French witch was about to jinx the horrid man when Harry pulled at her robes and gestured for her to stop.

"Don't. I'm used to this. Don't get yourself in trouble for my sake." Harry's pleading look only incensed the witch as she used her wand to slam the door unceremoniously in Vernon's face, locking and silencing it magically before tending to Harry's bleeding lip. A flick of her wand had the cut mended and Harry licked the remaining blood off his lips earning him a disgusted look from Fleur.

"You shouldn't be living with such horrible people, Harry." Fleur spoke with sympathy in her voice.

"Blame that on Dumbledore. Still, you know what would have happened if you cursed him, the Ministry would be here in seconds and we'd both be in trouble."

The door clicked as it was unlocked magically and Tonks appeared in his doorway. "What the hell happened, Harry? And who is this?" She had her wand raised at Fleur, who was holding Harry protectively and still had her wand in her hand.

"Tonks, this is Fleur. Fleur, this is Tonks. Now, I can't answer your question unless you promise me you won't go to Dumbledore about this. You'll understand why in a moment, but I need your word." Something in Harry's eyes told her she was not going to like anything she would hear within the next few minutes. Still, her curiosity got the better of her and she nodded silently. Harry promptly explained the events of the entire morning including Sirius' revelation that the Headmaster was meddling too deeply in Harry's life and in ways almost everyone with a say in his upbringing would have protested were they not dead. Tonks' usual shade of pink gave way to a very angry red as she listened.

"That old git _planned_ all this?"

"Take a look at this room, Harry tells me he's lived in worse conditions." Fleur added; her tone of voice equally angry though the volume did not match Tonks' yet.

"That's it. We need to do something about this. Firstly, this room needs to be fixed. I am not letting you live like this. Secondly, I am going to warn the Muggles not to try anything else or I will hex them myself. I'll explain everything to Hopkirk myself if I have to. Lastly, I won't be here all the time so it's best if Fleur remains here for now. I don't think I want to explain why the anti-Apparition wards flared or that it registered someone other than Dung or me."

Both Fleur and Harry nodded to Tonks' instructions, and she quickly promised to return after dealing with the Muggles. A flutter of wings announced Hedwig's arrival as she held out her leg to allow Harry to detach the letter tied to it.

_Dear Harry,_

_I believe this letter will find you after you received a note from Gringotts regarding Sirius' will. While I am sure you are eager to go, I am afraid I must ask you to stay at the Dursleys' for a while longer. It is not safe for you to be outdoors so soon after news of Voldemort's return has just gone public. I have arranged for you to visit Gringotts to hear the contents of the will for yourself at a later date. It will also be easier for you to simply pick up your school supplies and join the Weasleys and Miss Granger at Grimmauld Place thereafter. I am sure you will agree with me that a single trip will expose you to far less danger. It would also give you time to deal with the death of Sirius._

_Regards  
>Dumbledore<em>

Harry crumpled the parchment and threw it aside. He wasn't going to bother with a reply after what he learned about the Headmaster. Fleur picked up on this as she got up to leave the room. "I'll be back in a while, Harry. Get some sleep."

8-8-8

Harry awoke to find Tonks and Fleur sitting on the floor beside his bed, talking in hushed tones. He rose up groggily and cleared his throat to get the attention of the two witches. Tonks spoke up first. "I added Fleur to the wards around the house so they won't trigger when she comes and goes. Still, I think she should remain inside here as much as possible since the sound is a tip-off to anyone watching outside. I'll be right in here during my shifts so unless I say otherwise, assume my absence means someone else is outside. I'll be keeping watch mostly during the day. I've also added some wards to prevent the sensors from detecting magic done here, but I'm pants at it so it's limited to this room. I'd advise you don't go out and test your luck with your uncle. I know you've been emancipated but it'll take a few days to clear through the paperwork thanks to Fudge's stupid cutbacks and I'll try to run interference to keep Dumbledore from finding out."

Before Harry could say anything, Fleur produced a book and a pack with some of her things. "I've also brought some of my things so I can stay here if I need to, and a book to help you with your Occlumency. I've also brought some food since the Muggles obviously aren't feeding you properly. Tonks, if you could bring some food back on your next shift?" The pink-haired Auror simply nodded and checked the time. "I've got fifteen minutes before Dung shows up. I better get outside and wait."

There was an obvious start of Vernon's ranting when Tonks showed up downstairs, but Harry heard her voice threatening the fat excuse for an uncle and a prompt sound of the slamming door.

Fleur settled Harry back on the bed and passed him the book. She explained the basics of Occlumency for the first half an hour, which made whatever Snape seemed to teach him look like rocket science as far he was concerned.

"It will be difficult at first but try to focus on a single calming image rather than keeping your mind blank." Harry closed his eyes and tried to do as Fleur instructed. "Control your breathing like I taught you… Yup, that's it… Now, if you feel yourself getting pulled or feeling drowsy like during the ritual don't resist it, just let it guide you. You'll find a sort of building or a place familiar to you, which you identify the most with. Explore it, but don't do anything just yet. Once you're done just focus on leaving the place and you should wake up. I'll wake up in two hours if I don't get any response from you."

The young wizard just nodded and focused on the task he was given.

Sinking into the black void that was his mind, Harry found himself staring at the fog again, although this time there seemed to be trees around him. He took a few steps forward, and finding that the invisible barrier was no longer there, continued to approach the silhouette in the distance. There seemed to some resistance in the air impeding his movements, but it was probably the remainder of his feelings of grief. At least the young wizard now had the courage to face them and was determined to let them settle naturally over the next few days.

Once he was out of the fog, the sight that stood before him amazed him. Hogwarts stood before him, but it seemed as if the entire village of Hogsmeade had moved onto the grounds, surrounded by the Forbidden Forest. Harry explored the village slowly and then entered the castle, finding that the details of the entire area were shockingly accurate. He had hardly noticed the paintings hanging along the walls, but was certain that they were all probably at the same exact positions they'd be hanging at Hogwarts.

He walked into the Great Hall where ghosts of his schoolmates seemed to come and go. He watched with amusement as he witnessed younger versions of himself talking to Ron and Hermione, at different positions along the Gryffindor table. His mind had probably adopted Hogwarts' image since it was the closest thing that resembled home to him.

He explored the rest of the castle, starting with the Gryffindor common room and his usual classrooms, moving to the Headmaster's office and finally, the library. In the library he found most of the textbooks he had read in his lessons as well as several other books he had borrowed from Hermione for light reading. Taking one of the books, he was surprised to see that the text was accurate for every word, right up to the point where he had stopped reading the book. The pages were blank after that. Harry surmised this was the part of his memory that contained his school's knowledge, and wondered why it was so difficult to retain knowledge from his lessons if he had such a good memory. Walking away from the organized shelves, Harry saw the reason why. Most of his knowledge was strewn about the library, and he realized the shelves were not organized properly. It was properly why he'd find it hard to remember certain things from his subjects – they were lost under the rest of the information he had held in this library. Making a mental note to speak to Fleur about how organizing his thoughts in here would aid him, Harry was amused as a piece of parchment appeared on the desk in front of with the exact same thought expressed.

Confident that he was familiar enough with Hogsmeade and Hogwarts to be able to commit the layout to mind, Harry surfaced from his mind again and opened his eyes to see Fleur rummaging through several objects in a bag. She was bent over it and her shirt had ridden up her torso to reveal her flawless skin along her back and the top of the black lace panties she was wearing, hugging her slender waist. Harry's breath caught in his throat as his eyes were glued to the amazing sight in front of her.

Fleur turned around to see Harry was now conscious. He abruptly lowered his gaze to the floor to avoid the awkwardness that ensued. Fleur suppressed a giggle at the effect she had on the famous wizard. She had kept her Veela charm in check in order to not distract him but to know that he found her attractive nonetheless was quite flattering. She took out a book from her bag and passed it to Harry, who took it with his gaze still averted from her.

"Harry, you're not the first guy to stare at me like that. I am part-Veela so I'm used to it, your embarrassment is actually making this more awkward than it needs to be." Fleur teased him a little as he sputtered a little at her frankness. The witch giggled, more audibly this time as she sat down beside him and gestured for him to open the book. The title read _Occlumency: Defending Your Mind_ and Harry turned to the second chapter which detailed what was left to do for his learning of Occlumency.

_It is often instinctive for one to guard one's secrets by securing the information behind a vault, or some part of the location seemingly secure or guarded. However, doing this often gives away where the information is hidden hence it is strongly recommended that one leaves false trails, or hide the information in plain sight entirely._

_The true objective, however, should not be to completely deny access to people trying to seek the information out, but rather delay the intruder and alert one to the intrusion. Awareness of an outsider in one's mind will very quickly force the foreign mind to be ejected out, at times with painful results. It is entirely possible to trap the invader altogether, but to do so is dangerous and not recommended as having a second consciousness within your own may often lead to mental health issues from the strain and attempts by the invader to force their way out. Once locked in, the invader's body will also enter a comatose state, and if not cared for will result in the permanency of keeping the invader's consciousness in one's mind. Such a technique also requires great skill and concentration on the defender's part and should not be attempted by beginners._

There were several illustrations that detailed the different examples of doing it, but Harry was already sorting through the options he had. Should someone probe his mind, they'd no doubt search Hogwarts first, beginning with the Gryffindor common room or the Headmaster's office. Harry made sure to avoid those locations, adding the Room of Requirement to the list as an afterthought. Then again, the list of hiding places would only be useful if he knew what he wanted to hide. Fleur left Harry to his own devices as she left the chamber briefly to gather more food and water. While their bodies did not require sustenance while in the room since they'd only be in there for a few hours in reality, learning Occlumency often tired the wizard out.

Fleur returned to see Harry back in a trance, a list of the information he was going to protect and the possible hiding places in front of him. Flipping the piece of parchment over, Fleur grinned as she felt nothing but calm from the younger wizard, and rested on a chair while waiting for him to rouse once again.

8-8-8

Back in his mind, Harry went about retrieving his memories, which appeared in different forms. He placed the prophecy in the chest that held the Snitch and Bludgers, and left it in the Quidditch store. Should an invader try to look for it, they'd have to contend with two Bludgers and try to locate the Snitch which would fly around the entire place keeping them from reaching it. As per the book's instructions, the opening of the chest would alert Harry to the presence of another person and force the invader out.

Harry moved from the Quidditch pitch to the second floor bathroom. If his mind had really taken the form of Hogwarts, then this was the best place to store the events of the past two days from Snape or Dumbledore's attempts. Finding the tap with the snake engraved, Harry whispered in Parseltongue and found an all too familiar memory as the Chamber of Secrets opened. He chuckled a bit at the double entendre of the name in this context as he placed memories within the chamber as basilisk fangs scattered on the floor beside the corpse of the great snake.

He saw the ghosts of Ginny and his twelve year old self fade into view, and was tempted to stop the memory before he realized he could possibly turn it to his advantage. As the ghost of the Basilisk appeared, he commanded it to rest at the entrance and attacked any who came through. While Dumbledore or Snape would not get past the entrance, Voldemort could and Harry did not feel like exposing any more of his secrets to the Dark wizard than he already had.

He then put in images from the Pensieve, recalled the emotions of Sirius' death and the first time he gazed into the Mirror of Erised. If strong feelings of love were what kept Voldemort from possessing him and invading his mind, than these images would no doubt force him to exit Harry's mind from the pain they would cause him.

The most sensitive information dealt with, Harry then headed into Hogsmeade where he hid the memories he simply wished to keep private in the homes around the area. He avoided the Three Broomsticks and Hog's Head entirely, knowing that'd be where anyone would look. Once the last of these memories were stored away, Harry exited his mindscape again.

The repeated exercise took its toll on him as Harry's head pounded painfully. Fleur came to his side with a cup of blue liquid. "This will help the headache." She explained and he downed it quickly. It tasted sweet and was pleasantly surprised that a potion did not taste foul or burn his throat for once.

"We can take a break for a while, you've earn the rest." Fleur said with a smile as she conjured a couch and both of them reclined on it. The pair conversed idly, sharing a few laughs while they simply let the conversation carry itself. Neither was aware of the other's growing feelings of attraction, or perhaps they had not even realized it themselves.

8-8-8

Over the course of the day within Harry sorted through his mind, especially the library. The shelves were now arranged according to subject of study and importance, and when he surfaced after doing that found he was able to recall the information from his lessons with ease. Fleur was impressed by this move, as most wizards found it a bother to do so with their Occlumency. Most believed that the most important information was hardly buried so it normally ranked low on the priorities of those learning the art.

He had also erected a barrier around the place as a first line of defense. The process took several days as Harry needed to ensure there were no breaches in the shielding and to make it as strong as he could. The shield formed slowly first as a fine mist around his mindscape, then taking the form of a silver dome. It felt quite solid and Harry felt confident it would do the job of preventing entry to any Legilimens.

Tonks returned later that evening, Apparating right into Harry's room. She had brought back pizza from the restaurant nearby and both Harry and Fleur ate gratefully as the Dursleys had not sent any food through the cat flap throughout the day. Harry half-suspected Vernon realized there was still another witch in his room and if they had seen the food the Dursleys were giving him there'd be trouble; their pride would not allow them to serve him decent food either and there was no way in hell they'd provide any food for the French whore Harry had in his room.

"I've got a double shift till tomorrow evening. Dung made a swap to conclude some business last night." Tonks announced irritably. "Honestly, I don't get why Dumbledore lets him guard you. If the Death Eaters came here you'd effectively be alone."

Harry chose not to answer the question. "So, why don't you stay in here for the night?"

"That is a really bad way to proposition me, Harry." Tonks asked, giving him an angry look.

"I meant that you don't have to stay out in the cold!" Harry protested which caused Tonks to burst into laughter.

"I was just teasing, Harry." She explained once she was done. "Still, your room is a dump. Even Lupin doesn't live in such a slum."

Fleur nodded vehemently beside Harry. "Tomorrow, we will fix this room while you practice your Occlumency."

Tonks enlarged the bed Harry slept in and cleaned it magically. "You staying over, Fleur?"

"I don't think I want to test his uncle's patience. I have lodging near Gringotts so I'll return there. I might stay over from time to time to help Harry."

Tonks opened her mouth to say something, but her grin told Harry she was trying to tease Fleur as well. "Thanks, Fleur." He managed to say before Tonks could make her comment, giving the Metamorphagus a very annoyed glare.

Fleur Apparated out of the room and the Auror in the room chuckled at Harry's intervention. "So, defending your girlfriend from the mean witch, are we?"

"It's not polite to tease my guests." Harry replied with a good-natured scowl. "I'd much rather have you as my girlfriend, Tonks." He managed return her jab while leaning in close to her. The older witch laughed and simply pushed him away.

"I am much too old for you, Harry. Whatever would Molly say?"

"I like older women. And I guess we'd have to keep it a secret from Mrs Weasley then, how fun!" Harry grinned at the joke and the pink-haired witch was laughing uncontrollably.

"I have created a monster."

"Actually, Sirius did most of the work." Harry replied. The mention of Sirius had taken the joy out of the room somewhat. Tonks noticed this and moved over closer to Harry.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked, placing arm around his shoulder to console him.

"It… It's my fault he died. Why did I have to go to the Department of Mysteries? Why couldn't I have learned Occlumency properly?"

Tonks squeezed his shoulder and pulled him against her as the young boy cried. "It's not your fault, Harry. Nobody could learn Occlumency from the greasy git and it's Dumbledore's fault for making such an arrangement in the first place! You couldn't have known it was a trick, and I'm sure they'd make a real try at Sirius if you didn't show."

"But I couldn't stop Bellatrix from killing him! I should have helped."

"Bellatrix Lestrange is a crazy hag and you'd be mad to try and duel her. You and your friends were outnumbered by the Death Eaters. I'm sorry Sirius died, Harry, but it's not your fault. None of it is. You didn't ask for Voldemort to come after your parents, and you couldn't have controlled who lived or died at the Department either."

The younger wizard sobbed for a while before the mention of his parents reminded him about his mother's journal. He picked it up from the desk and sat on the bed. "It's funny." He chuckled weakly. "I never knew what they looked like till my first year, never had anything from them other than my dad's cloak and now there's a journal written by my mom and I'm too afraid to open it."

Tonks took a spot beside Harry. "Do you want me to give you a moment?"

"No, please stay. I think I might need the company once I start reading." He flipped open the cover and saw the first words in his mother's handwriting. _To Harry, though I hope he never has to read this, this details the last days of my life and my words to him._

He flipped the page even as tears began to well in his eyes again.

_Harry,_

_If you're reading this, then Voldemort managed to get past all the protection we had. It also means that your father and I are dead but you are very much alive. I know this journal can't replace having us back, but it'll have to do. I keep wondering if you'd have grown up with Voldemort still in power, or if you'd have a peaceful life. I hope it's the latter._

_Dumbledore told us the prophecy yesterday. Maybe from the moment he told us we already knew we weren't going to survive to the end of this war. Still, I see no point living in fear even if death comes for you. Remember that, Harry. There are worse fates than death. Your father and I died to protect you and that's more than any parent could ask for in their last moments. Know that if Voldemort is indeed still alive and coming for you, then you have nothing to fear when you face him. If you lose, you'll get to see us again, if you don't, it means his power will be broken._

_We've faced him before, and I know he's terrifying in person, Harry, but he's still human. Well, at least, some part of him is still mortal. I'm not sure anyone would call him human at this point. If he's still alive when you read this, then we hope you're ready for the task you have left to do. Regardless of the outcome, Harry, your father and I are proud of you. I'm sure you've grown into a fine young man with friends like Sirius and Remus. I do hope you're not getting into as much trouble as they did at school, though. I do hope you live each moment like your last and don't spend a single moment wishing things were different. Sometimes people are thrown in adversity for a reason._

_I've left in this journal details of some of my research and a very long list of spells your father learned in his time dueling Death Eaters. Some of them are quite… gruesome is the best word I guess, to say the least, but we'll be damned if we do anything less than whatever we can to prepare you for what you have to do. Be strong, Harry, not just for yourself but for those around you. I can't count the number of times we've had close shaves against Death Eaters. I will say that we came out on top each time because when you fight to protect those closest to you, when you're ready to give up your life for another, you have a weapon more powerful than any Dark curse the Death Eaters can throw at you._

_Give Sirius and Remus our love, Harry._

_Stay strong._

_Never give in, never give up._

_Love  
>Lily<em>

Harry was crying at this point, while Tonks held him. She held his head to her shoulder while he cried and comforted him. "They loved you, Harry. Even when their lives were threatened they only thought about you. I'm sure Sirius was the same. Live in honor of their memory."

He continued to cry and sob for a good half hour before exhaustion took over and he fell asleep in Tonks' arms. The Auror couldn't bear to disturb him and just lay there letting him rest before falling asleep as well.

8-8-8

_Department of Mysteries, Hidden Chamber_

Two men looked at the orb that was levitating in front of them. Images were flashing in the orb, of a few teenagers fighting against masked people in black cloaks. They watched as the two sides clashed and dueled.

"Impressive. All of them still students but holding their own against Death Eaters, and outnumbered at that."

"What's more impressive is the boy who taught them all that. Pity he had to watch his godfather die."

"I heard he survived another encounter with the Dark Tosser."

"That he did, and more. They didn't get their hands on the prophecy. He smashed it before they could take it from them."

"Dumbledore witnessed the prophecy, didn't he? He's probably told the boy already."

"I hope so. I'd hate to have to tell him myself. The Headmaster is a right git when it comes to important things like that." The masked man produced a piece of parchment at that. "Here's what we have on the Potter boy. First year: got past a whole bunch of nasty defenses and stopped You-Know-Who from getting the Philosopher's Stone. Second year, found the Chamber of Secrets and killed a basilisk. Third year, freed Sirius Black from Fudge's idiocy. Fourth year, competed in the Triwizard, bested a dragon with a Summoned broom, witnessed the Dark Tosser return, dueled him and returned alive with the body of Cedric Diggory, along with winning the Triwizard Tournament against competitors three years older than he was. Given, Crouch Junior messed around a little, but still impressive. Fifth year, broke in here, fought a bunch of Death Eaters outnumbered, then fought off the Great Git and came out alive."

"Why, I think you've taken a liking to the boy."

"You find me another teenage boy who has done all these things before he graduated from Hogwarts."

"Point taken."

A third man stepped into the room at this point. "He snuck off to Gringotts. Seems his godfather arranged private reading for him and warned him about Dumbledore. He returned with Fleur Delacour, former competitor in the Triwizard and Curse Breaker at Gringotts. My guess is the Headmaster put magic blocks on him and he had them removed. They had a brief confrontation with the Muggle who lives there and Nymphadora Tonks showed up. He spent the better part of the day practicing Occlumency. Delacour left in the evening but Tonks is still there. Last I saw was that they were having a private moment. The kid's pretty torn up about what happened to Black. He was reading a journal too. I believe his mom left that to him."

The three men gathered were silent for a moment before the first spoke up again. "We'll watch how things go for a few more days. Tonks' file has been on my desk before, only thing she got going against her is her clumsiness. If she hadn't joined the Order I would have had her join us."

"Delacour?"

"She's French. You know the type – all finesse and not ready to get their hands dirty. Her work's as a Curse Breaker seems fine so far, but it's only been a year. I suppose we could give her shot. If the accounts of the Triwizard are anything to go by, she's not as much a fighter as the other two."

"Well, give her a shot anyway. The boy needs people he can trust and already knows. We'll see how it goes at the end of the week."

8-8-8

_Well, there's Chapter 2 out of the way. This chapter took on an entirely different path from what I was expecting. Unfortunately it also means I'll probably end up deleting whatever I typed up for Chapters 3 and 4 so they fit with the new path the plot is taking._

_The Occlumency part was inspired by Inception, and I figured it's a pretty good comparison between Legilimency and Occlumency. I'm pretty sure I'm not the first person to come up with this, but what the heck._

_Several other ideas and concepts in this chapter probably originate from somewhere else. It's just how I pictured things would happen in my head so they're probably inspired from other sources like anime or movies or other fanfics. Take this as a form of disclaimer if you will. I'm probably not the most creative person when it comes to HP fanfics._


	3. Friends in High Places

**Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Potterverse except in my delusional mind and fantasies. Maybe if I pray hard enough they'll come true. If I could somehow buy the title deed to Hogwarts and get a contract for Tonks and Fleur, however, I would. Maybe throw in Hermione as well. Possibly a few other girls like Daphne and Susan. They're already married to me in my head anyway. Until then JKR still owns the rights to everything. (Damn…)**

**Chapter 3: Friends in High Places**

Harry awoke to find Tonks lying next to him on the bed. A moment of shock took him before he remembered the events from the night before. He had been reading the journal his mother had left him, and fell asleep grieving the deaths of his parents and Sirius with Tonks comforting him. He looked guiltily as he saw the tear stains on Tonks' robes and the fact that his left hand was now resting atop her breast. He removed it with a start, unfortunately waking the Auror up in the process.

"Grope and run, huh?" She asked, groggily. Harry blushed and got off the bed, apologizing profusely. She chuckled, too tired to laugh at his response. "It's quite alright, Harry. I hope you're feeling better." She moved the arm he had been lying on.

"My arm sure isn't." She commented as she tried to work the soreness out of her arms. "You know, the girl usually sleeps on the guy's shoulder, not the other way round."

Harry laughed at that. "I'm sorry? I'll make it up to you next time you need a guy to sleep next to."

The pink-haired witch raised an eyebrow. "I might quite like that." A sultry grin had Harry choking on air before Tonks burst out laughing. "You are too easy."

"That's why you making a move on me?" Harry returned with a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. The two managed to laugh at the joke before Tonks rose from the bed and straightened her robes with a flick of her wand.

An angry knock on the door told Harry the humor of the morning was about to leave. He opened the door to find his uncle standing there. "What the ruddy hell are you doing? You're supposed to be making- WHY IS THAT TROLLOP IN HERE SO EARLY?" He moved in to accost Harry, but Tonks had her wand out and sent Vernon sprawled in the doorway with a Tripping Jinx. Vernon merely got back up on his feet again and moved towards Harry, but the boy now had his wand out.

"Threatening me with that? You can't use magic outside of school!" A loud bang had Vernon flying into the far wall on the other side of the hallway. His skull met the wall with a sickening thud as the large man groaned in pain.

"I can now." Harry growled. "Insult my friends again and I'll make sure you pay with more than just a nasty fall. Prepare your own damned breakfast." He slammed the door and locked it with his wand, silencing the door again. Tonks was still glaring at the door as if it had offended her and not Vernon.

"How have you been putting up with these Muggles? Surely you told Dumbledore about all this."

"Just kept my head down and did what they asked. Mostly keeps me out of trouble if I do that. I never bothered telling Dumbledore before because it always seemed like he had a lot on his mind. Knowing how much he's meddled in my life now, I won't bother telling him. If I deal with the Dursleys, I'm going to do it myself. I'm not sure the old fool would do anything about them anyway. I'm nice and _safe_ here while my mother's protection holds."

Fleur Apparated into the room with a crack, finding a disgruntled Tonks and Harry. "Did something happen? Was it the Muggles again?" Harry nodded silently before sitting the floor, leaning against the wall. Fleur made no comment about the Muggles but simply passed him a sandwich. "I made you breakfast." She announced with a smile as he took it and ate silently. His mood had improved with Fleur's arrival, especially since she had taken the trouble of preparing breakfast for him and Tonks.

The two witches were having a discussion in hushed tones while he ate, ensuring that Harry couldn't hear what they were saying. He was curious, but any attempt to eavesdrop was countered either by them moving away or giving him an irritated glare. He got the message and simply started on his Occlumency practice, sorting through more memories and information in his mind, preparing more defenses. In his mindscape, he found that he could make all sorts of fun things happen, such as animating the suits of armor leading to the Gryffindor Tower to give the illusion that there was something important there. He set the Fat Lady's portrait to open to the word "Padfoot", giving the impression that the memories within were sentimental of some nature. He filled it with memories of Gryffindor students snogging in the common room and the lecture Hermione gave him and Ron while they were studying for exams. He moved to other parts of the castle invaders would attack first, storing mundane memories and horrifying images from his encounters that weren't important to the war against Voldemort. The gargoyle leading up to Dumbledore's office would attack any intruders until they provided the password, which was earwax. Harry chuckled at the joke as he remembered why Dumbledore stopped eating Every Flavor Beans.

He spent more time tidying the library sections and working on the information recall. He even made an image of a librarian, whom he gave the appearance of Hermione. He hadn't really wanted to see Madam Pince whenever he needed to recall something from his lessons.

8-8-8

When Harry stopped his Occlumency exercises, he opened his eyes to find that his room had triple in size since the last time and had now become a small apartment. His bed was now queen-sized with the sheets transfigured to a more comfortable material. Fleur and Tonks smiled, sitting on the chair that had been transformed into a couch. "Surprise, Harry." They announced together with a laugh. He smiled as he realized what they had been planning in the morning.

"Thanks, you two did all this?"

"There's even a bathroom back there so you don't have to risk going outside where your uncle can hit you and you can't use magic." Tonks explained, beaming. She took him by the hand and dragged him into the bathroom, which looked like it had been done by professionals. "The plumbing works too, courtesy of the Dursleys."

Harry settled on the couch with Tonks and Fleur at his side, retrieving his mother's journal as he did. He flipped it open to a page which had spells listed down. She wasn't joking about some of them being gruesome. There was one which was designed to shatter the bone at the location of the hit completely, and a note made by his father warned Harry that a hit to the chest or head would kill the target instantly while a hit to the spine almost certainly guaranteed paralysis. A hit on the arm or a leg was less deadly but extremely painful and would incapacitate most opponents. There was another which would bend the part of the body backwards where the joints didn't allow. It was nasty enough to snap someone's neck or totally remove half of a limb if done right. James made a note saying that it was meant as a prank to reverse the way a person's joints moved so they'd have to walk backwards but he had made it nastier for the sake of dealing with Death Eaters.

The trio looked through all the spells, wincing at those that seemed painful while chuckling at others which were no less useful in a fight but filled their heads with amusing images. When Harry reached the last three, however, he stopped laughing. His father had written the Unforgivables in there. He read the note underneath the three spells.

_Now, these spells are called Unforgivables for a reason. I hope you never find yourself in a situation where you need to use it, but understand that many of the Death Eaters will not hesitate to use them from the get go. There is no shield or spell powerful enough to stop them so if they're flying at you get out of the way or put something between you. I hope you don't balk at me for suggesting this Harry, but if you need to, use them. Your mother might never approve of me writing these in here but I'm not trying to raise a murderer, I'm trying to help my son survive. You need to understand what you're going up against._

"Your father's pretty serious about keeping you safe." Tonks commented as she read the note. "Moody showed you everything in the fourth year, didn't he? He made sure all the Auror recruits saw those three first. I remember my first day with him." She shuddered at the memory. "He's as insane as people say, but I'd rather have him on my side. It seems like your father agrees with him when it comes to fighting You-Know-Who."

Harry chuckled imagining his father raising him with all of Moody's paranoia. "It would've made for a pretty interesting childhood." The two witches with him chuckled at the thought and they browsed through the rest of the spells. A few were spells the Death Eaters liked to use, and his parents had included them only to warn Harry about them and his mother had left very stern warnings to never attempt them unless absolutely necessary.

Lunch was provided courtesy of Fleur once again, as she produced three bags with burgers and chips. She had casted a charm to keep the food fresh and warm when she bought them on the way here, and Harry found himself pleasantly surprised by the variety of things magic could do. He was learning something new every day.

Harry continued on his Occlumency after lunch while Fleur and Tonks continued to work on the room. The witches seemed unusually excited to start on the finer details of the room as they varied the color and design on the walls, casted Air Freshening Charms. Fleur even warded an area of the room so Harry could practice the spells in the journal. Tonks transfigured some of Dudley's old toys which were lying about into target dummies, hoping earnestly that Harry would reduce the targets to a pulp and leave her nothing to change back.

Once Harry was done he spent the rest of the afternoon practicing a few of the weaker spells. Several of them were already in his arsenal, which cut down the list considerably. The rest of them were standard Auror spells that Tonks was able to help him until he got the hang of them.

"Dung will be here in ten minutes. I best leave before he sees me in here and goes to Dumbledore about this." Tonks announced as Harry blasted the last dummy against the wall. She opened the door and left down the stairs, earning a squeak from Petunia as she passed. Thankfully Vernon and Dudley were out of the house and quite unable to voice their protest.

"I suppose you need to be leaving soon as well." Harry said to Fleur, a little disappointed that he'd no longer have any company in his room. The French witch smiled and settled back on the couch.

"I have the fortunate circumstance of not having family in Britain or people I need to report to. I can stay a while longer."

Hedwig returned, giving Harry an annoyed peck as she dropped the food package from the Weasleys and several of his friends' letters on the desk. Harry apologized softly and turned to see Fleur grinning at the exchange.

"What?" He asked innocently.

"I see why you need company. You're talking to an owl." She chuckled.

"Well, yeah, she's my only companion during the summer and she's smart for an owl; holds conversations really well." Hedwig gave a proud hoot at his praise, earning a chuckle from the two humans in the room.

Harry opened the food package first, and was thrilled to see that Mrs. Weasley had packed a rather generous amount of meat pies and sandwiches in the basket. There were several packets of snacks and sweets from Ron and Ginny as well. He offered some of the food to Fleur before taking some for himself and set his meal on the floor beside her. He read through the letters as they ate, laughing at the appropriate points and glaring pointedly at the letters whenever his friends made a dig at him.

Fleur was watching him with interest as he read the letters. He looked up to find her smiling at him. "What?" He asked innocently.

"I have hardly seen someone react so much to a simple letter." Fleur replied with a grin. Harry blushed at the comment. "Oh, relax, I'm not teasing you."

"It's the only contact I have with my friends during the summer." Harry managed to say once he got over the embarrassment. "Also, really fun to have proper food when the Dursleys are all following Dudley's diet."

Fleur managed a laugh at the thought, though her concern remained. She had thought him a little boy during the Triwizard Tournament, though his performance throughout the year earned her respect. He had wielded magic many of her schoolmates could not, though she would never admit it. Now she was watching him shrug off the abuse of the Dursleys as if it were perfectly normal for other children his age to be locked in their rooms for the summer.

"Fleur, you're looking at me funny again."

"Sorry, I was just wondering how you can put up with these Muggles. They lock you up in here all summer! You're barely eating enough. If people in our world hear about this there'd be riots."

Harry chuckled at the thought. "Rioting over the Dursleys… That'll be a sight."

"And you can joke about it as if you're not being mistreated." She added for good measure, though there was another grin tugging on the corners of her lips.

"Well, I suppose I just sort of got used to it growing up. Thankfully they know what might happen to them if they push me too far."

"No one should live like this, Harry."

"No one should be famous because they didn't die from a Dark wizard's killing curse." Harry replied bluntly. "My life isn't exactly normal, even by wizarding standards."

They continued to talk late into the night, before Fleur decided to leave. Harry casted a Silencing Charm over the entire room before Fleur Apparated home, making sure that Mundungus wouldn't hear her exit. He stored away the food before finally collapsing on his new bed and falling asleep. Mundungus Fletcher was busy selling the artifacts he had snitched from Grimmauld Place, and failed to notice that perched on the roof of the adjacent house was another wizard who was observing Harry's room with interest. Granted, the strange observer had placed a Disillusionment Charm on himself, but a careful look would reveal a human-shaped shimmer on the roof.

Once Harry had fallen asleep and all activity ceased in his room, the wizard Apparated away without a sound.

8-8-8

"His parents are quite the pair." The wizard commented once he appeared back in the hidden chamber of the Department of Mysteries. "The journal his mother left him had spells they used in the war. They didn't hold back with the nasty ones either. I'm sure I saw a few they invented themselves."

"Why, Hawke, I'd have thought you're starting to fancy the Potters."

The wizard named Hawke simply laughed at the dig. "I've never seen more talent in a single family. Lily Potter was quite the witch in her time, and James Potter would have been a great wizard if he had focused on more than just pranking people with his skills. Still, even faced with the threat of death the only thing they could think to do was make sure their son was well-prepared if they didn't survive the war. There aren't many wizards or witches who had that kind of nerve back when Snake-face was in power."

"I'll give you that. I take it he practiced some of the spells?"

"With a little help from the Auror, yeah. Set up anti-detection wards so the Ministry wouldn't know. The Delacour girl is quite talented as well, if untested. I managed to dig up some information on her education in Beauxbatons. Grades are decent, not exactly the top witch in her class, but talented enough to turn some heads. She currently holds the record for most consecutive wins in duels as well. For a school full of girls ready to do all sorts of nasty things out of jealousy, that's saying something."

"If I didn't know better, Hawke, I'd say you're raring to just go and meet the three of them."

"Say the word, Titus, and I'll bring them in tomorrow." Hawke challenged with a laugh. His companion only chuckled at the challenge and nodded, which took him by surprise.

"You're serious?"

"From what I've seen, the boy is obviously taking the fight into his own hands, and from the two witches helping him, I can assume that Dumbledore's out of the picture. We both disagree with the Headmaster's inaction when it comes to Lard Dork. I get the feeling Harry feels the same. The fact that he showed up here all of a sudden without Dumbledore tells me the old man isn't exactly forthcoming with the boy who's supposed to kill the bastard.

Titus now rose from his seat, his eyes shining fiercely with determination underneath the mask. "You know half of us in here have lost family and friends to _him _the first time round. If the Chosen One is going to take the fight to You-Know-Who, I'm sure going to help him. It seems his Headmaster isn't keen on doing that, at least not in a more proactive manner."

"Very well, I'll approach him tomorrow. You do realize he'll probably ask the two witches with him to come along, right? It could all go very badly."

"I highly doubt even with the three of them together they could take out all the Unspeakables. Worst case scenario, we do some Memory Charms and they'll forget they ever came here."

8-8-8

Harry woke up just as the sky was beginning to grow brighter with the rising sun. He felt wonderfully refreshed, something he'd never experienced before at the Dursleys'. He wondered for a moment if it had something to do with the new bed he now had. He headed into the bathroom and rubbing the sleep from his eyes, pondered for a moment when the Dursleys had installed a new bathroom before he remembered the work of the two witches. He splashed some water on his face to wake himself up fully, before turning on the shower.

Ten minutes later he stepped out of the bathroom much more alert and awake. He opened the door to the cupboard that stored the food the Weasleys had sent him and took out more of Molly's meat pie. He laid the few pieces down on the table and started eating when a voice called out to him.

"You know, if I were a Death Eater you'd be dead by now."

Harry sprung up from his seat to reach for his wand, only to remember he had left it by his bed. The man chuckled from the couch he was reclining on. He was wearing a mask, which showed only his eyes. Even the man's voice sounded a bit distorted through it, making it difficult to match it to a person. Harry doubted anyone he knew would simply appear in his room unannounced like that anyway.

"Relax, Potter. I mean you no harm. I'd doubt you could take me anyway, since your wand is on the other side of the room."

"Yeah, well I don't normally have strangers in my room this early in the morning. How'd you get in here anyway?"

"Some of the perks of my job is that I learn how to get past little things like anti-Apparition wards. I'm quite surprised you haven't asked me who I am."

"You're wearing a mask. It's a bit redundant to ask a masked man who he is." Harry replied. He was still tense and ready to spring into action. The stranger merely chuckled.

"You can call me Hawke. It's not my real name, in case you're wondering. Just an alias I use. Now, before you ask, I'm here because my friends and I are quite interested in you. We've seen what you did to our place of work a few weeks ago and we're quite impressed. Not many wizards manage to duel Death Eaters while outnumbered and come out alive, and you haven't even graduated yet."

"You're from the Department of Mysteries?" Harry asked incredulously. The man chuckled again.

"Unless you snuck into someone else's place of work and fought Death Eaters there as well, yes, I'm from the Department of Mysteries."

"You're here about the prophecy then."

"Not really. We already know about the prophecy. I already said, we're interesting in _you_. Barely sixteen and already you've survived meeting the Dark Tosser four times. You were just a baby on his first visit too. Only one other person can say that; most don't make it past visit number one, and last I checked those that did are either dead, in St Mungo's or currently the Headmaster of Hogwarts."

"Five." Harry corrected Hawke, his nervousness punctuating every syllable.

"Excuse me?"

"If you count the time when I was still an infant, I've faced him five times."

"When you were one, in your first year, fourth year, and a few weeks ago at the DOM, am I missing one?"

"Second year, his old school diary was enchanted. Possessed one of my friends and opened the Chamber of Secrets."

"Ah, Dumbledore must've kept it quiet then. He's quite good at that if he managed to keep such details from the entire school. I thought the rumor mill at Hogwarts was a bit more effective than that."

"The only ones who know are my friends, Dumbledore and Lucius Malfoy. None of them breathed a word, especially Malfoy, since he's the one responsible for it."

The man chuckled. "And somehow, nobody in Fudge's administration believes he's a Death Eater. Quite amusing, the things gold does to people."

Fleur and Tonks Apparated into the room at this point, and seeing the man on the couch, drew their wands and started throwing curses. The man laughed as a shield formed in front of him, blocking all of them. Harry didn't even see him draw his wand.

"Ah, here is the young Auror and Beauxbatons top duelist." Hawke commented with a chuckle. "Now that all three of you are gathered, I guess I better get down to business."

"What business does an Unspeakable have with Harry?" Tonks asked; her wand still trained on the man. "Aside from the fact that he broke into your department, which I assume wouldn't bring you here since everyone knows it was You-Know-Who who goaded him there."

The man nodded, and Harry could've sworn for a moment he was smiling under the mask, although he could not see the man's facial features. "You're right; we're not interested that he broke into our department. We're interested in _him _specifically. Not many fifteen year olds can duel that many Death Eaters and come out relatively unscathed. From what we saw from our department's records, that was him using school level spells and dueling on the level of a kids' brawl."

"Wait, you're saying you want to _recruit_ him?"

"Not just him. You and Miss Delacour over here have caught our attention as well. We've been watching Potter here since he returned to Privet Drive. You two have been helping him and your own backgrounds are qualification enough for consideration. His schoolmates are rather impressive as well but taking that many schoolchildren is risky. In fact, Miss Tonks, you'd have been recruited earlier if you hadn't joined Dumbledore's Order."

"Wait… Why do you want to recruit me?" Harry asked. "I'm not that special."

The man guffawed at this. "You're not that special? Well then, boy, name me someone else who's faced the Dark Lord in his first, second, fourth and fifth year, won the Triwizard Tournament at fourteen, slain a Basilisk with the _sword of Gryffindor_, led a group of schoolmates against Death Eaters and brought every single one of them back relatively unharmed?"

"I've had help all the time! And most of it was luck!"

"I bet there are a lot of people who would debate with you on that. Help only goes so far, from what I hear you were _alone _in that graveyard when _he_ returned. You were alone that night surrounded by a dozen Death Eaters and you managed to escape. If it is all luck like you said, all the more you need our help, don't you? You'd need to be lucky every time he comes for you; he only needs to get lucky _once._"

"You can't be serious! You're recruiting Harry into your ranks when he's barely of age?"

"That's entirely up to him. The consensus at this point is that we're willing to help the one person who can put a stop to You-Know-Who permanently. Normally we only train those whom will join us as Unspeakables, but the current climate warrants an exception. Dumbledore's obviously not helping him learn how to fight, that much is obvious from the events at the DOM. The Unspeakables are people who working in the dark to protect the wizarding community, and many of us have lost loved ones and partners to _him _the last time he was in power. You could say we have a vested interest in making sure Potter comes out the winner."

"Why do you need Fleur and me then?"

"We've been watching him the past few days, like I said. You two have been helping him and keeping others in the dark. You're sodding mad if you think I'm going to send him to fight You-Know-Who alone. The Unspeakables have our own part to play in the war and if Potter gets involved with us it's going to be obvious. We need people he's close to and trusts to work with him and fight alongside him."

Fleur and Tonks shared a look before they both turned to Harry. "It's your call, Harry. The two of us are willing to go with you, but only if you want to."

Harry considered everything Hawke had said for a moment. "If I do this… I want to know everything you hear about the war. No secrets. If you're going after Death Eaters or if they're going after families of my schoolmates I want to know."

Hawke nodded. "That sounds fair enough to me. I'll have to warn you that it won't be a walk in the park, Potter. Recruits _die_ during training."

"Sounds like the past few years of my life since I started attending Hogwarts." Harry answered with fierce determination. Hawke laughed with glee at the boy's response.

"Very well, take this portkey and we'll get you to the DOM right now. It's time you meet the people who'll be teaching you."

8-8-8

The four of them touched the portkey as it activated with a blue glow, and Harry felt the familiar sensation of being pulled by his navel as his room spun into a blur and gave way to the dark stone walls of the Department of Mysteries. Not surprisingly, he was the only one who landed on his back. Hawke chuckled when he saw Harry sprawled on the floor.

"Not so good with portkeys." Hawke commented as he offered his hand. Harry took it and pulled himself back to his feet. There were two other Unspeakables in the room. A closer look told the raven-haired wizard that one of them was female.

"That was faster than I thought it would be. You didn't have to offer to take Veritaserum I take it?" The larger, stockier man joked through his mask. Hawke simply laughed at the question before replying. "It helps that one of them can identify an Unspeakable."

"I am Titus, and this witch beside me is Nutrix. Each of us will be training you three in something different. Hawke is in charge of scouting and stealth techniques, basically everything to do with spying on your enemy and making sure you don't get detected. I'll be teaching you how to handle yourself in a fight, and Nutrix here will teach you first aid healing and a little of the advanced stuff. Hopefully you won't have to use any of the last."

Hawke motioned for them to follow the three Unspeakables, and they headed down the corridor. Harry recognized it as the hallway before the spinning room with multiple doors. Before they entered that room, however, Hawke stopped and tapped the left wall with his wand, causing a doorway to appear. He motioned for the three of them to step in first.

There was a collective gasp as the trio saw the chamber before them. It was a large cavernous room with several other Unspeakable engaging in different activities. There were dummies which were casting curses at several of them, who were dodging and defending while sending their own curses back. Some were practicing first aid skills on very realistic looking mannequins while others were simply resting in a corner. It was Titus who cleared his throat to gain their attention as he explained the facility.

"This is where we train the _other_ Unspeakables. Basically most people think we're highly trained individuals who research magic. They're the ones further in with proper desks and offices. We're the ones who get our hands dirty when it comes to stopping Dark wizards or dangerous criminals. Most Ministry departments don't know we exist and effectively we're a law onto ourselves even though we try not to act like it. If we decided to stage a coup and overthrow the Minister we could, but it goes against the whole not getting caught aspect of our job. The people in here now are active operatives, but they're either waiting for missions or just finished one. This is probably a third of our effective force, the rest are either out in the field or recuperating in the medical bay. Some of them are in other departments closely linked to our jobs to help us get a better network of information going, so you won't see those people much. You'll soon get to meet most of them."

Hawke opened the door into a small office. He took a seat behind the desk. "Now, this is my office. When I'm not outside with the other operatives, you can find me here. Same goes for Nutrix and Titus, though their offices are on either side of mine. Now, we normally work in three to five man teams depending on the operatives' skill level and the needs of the team. Since you're not exactly joining us officially, you three will stick together. During your training we might get you to come along on our missions either to let you get some working experience or because we're shorthanded, but most of the time you'll be in the background. There are to be _no_ personal vendettas even if we run into some familiar Death Eaters, is that clear? I'll kill you myself if I have to." There was an apprehensive nod from Tonks and Harry. Fleur was the only one who had yet to face the enemy and hence just listened attentively.

"Now, for today we'll just be assessing each of you to see what we have to work with. Nymphadora, since we have your Auror test scores, we've got a basic feel for your training. You can sit this one out and help Harry instead." Nutrix instructed. She had more gentle and welcoming tone to her voice than Hawke and Titus, though Harry wasn't sure if it was because of her being a woman. Tonks glared at the use of her first name.

"If you have that much information on me you should know I hate being called by my first name." The three Unspeakables chuckled at her comment, and nodded.

"I'll remember that, Tonks." Nutrix replied. "You three should think of nicknames as well. It'll be difficult for us to keep this secret if we run into the Order or the enemy outside. I don't think we need to remind you three to maintain a strict level of secrecy."

The trio nodded, each of them nervous and excited about the prospect of learning from the most highly trained individuals in the wizarding world. Titus motioned for them to follow him, and he led the way to the ring where the Unspeakables had been training with the dummies. He waved the operatives who were training away, and they emptied the ring. With a flick of his wand the dummies lined up in a row twenty feet away from the three of them.

"This exercise is simple: just aim at the dummies and unleash whatever spells you know in a fight. You may begin whenever you're ready." Titus stepped back once he had finished his instructions, and the three of them drew their wands. For the next ten minutes they unleashed every spell in their arsenal, including the ones Harry learned from his parents' journal. The training targets were blasted with spell after spell, although they remained undamaged with each strike. Harry guessed there must be some sort of charm on the dummies that repaired any damage they received instantly or absorbed all incoming spells.

Titus was chuckling once they stopped. "Not bad. Tonks, your accuracy and power are decent for an Auror if a little lacking where our standards are concerned. Not a big deal, though I'm afraid we'll have to work on your speed. Harry, you have excellent power but poor control. Most of your spells are just aimed in the dummy's general direction instead of aiming for proper hits. Fleur, you're doing fine but your arsenal needs to be expanded. You may be the Beauxbatons duel champion, but the spells you're using are too _friendly_ for the people you'll be facing. Other than that, I'm quite pleased. I was expecting to have my work cut out for me but I guess the job is a little easier."

Nutrix walked over and took over for Titus. She dragged one of the mannequins over. "Now, I'm going to test your skill in healing. Harry, from what I hear your medical knowledge extends to the different potions you've taken during your time in Hogwarts, correct?" The young wizard nodded sheepishly. It just occurred to him that in all the time he was spending in constant danger and getting injured, he could have simply learned some first aid spells from Madame Promfrey during all the times he had to stay in the hospital wing. The time when Lockhart had removed all the bones from his arm should have been incentive enough.

"So I guess you'll be starting from square one. Most of the beginner spells aren't hard, I'll give you a list and you can practice them on your own. Tonks, Fleur, if you two don't mind showing me what you can do?"

The two witches spent the next few minutes showing their first aid skills. Tonks was able to heal injuries up to fractured bones and numbing pain from the wounds, but bones which had completely broken or any other more serious wounds were out of her league. Fleur was able to mend cuts and bruises but her skill ended at that.

"Pretty much the same level as what most of our new recruits can do then." Nutrix commented with a sigh. "I don't understand how we get people who are in constant danger or can do impressive things with their wands in a duel but are totally unable to mend the wounds they get in the process. You'd think these people have a death wish." Harry chuckled for a moment as he thought Nutrix was channeling Hermione and Promfrey at the same time.

The three of them were sent into Hawke's office after Nutrix was done with her assessment. "My part of the assessment is pretty simple, since your background basically tells me everything I need to know. Tonks, your Auror assessment tells me you failed the whole stealth aspect of your test because you were too clumsy. No worries though, I'll make sure I stomp that out of you by the time I'm done. Harry, aside from sneaking around the school at night, I take it you don't have any other experience?"

Harry shook his head with a sheepish grin. "I was never caught because of my dad's invisibility cloak and a map which shows the layout of Hogwarts and anyone prowling around."

Hawke chuckled. "So you've had the tools to help you in that regard. Well, I'm sure you'll learn a few more tricks from me. Fleur, no experience in your job as a Curse Breaker, am I right?" The French witch nodded with an indignant snort. Harry could've sworn he saw Hawke roll his eyes at her reaction. He guessed Hawke had stopped himself from saying "_French._"

"Well, that pretty much sums up your visit for today. If you'll follow me, I'll bring to get some cloaks and masks the Unspeakables use. We don't want word to get out who we have learning from us down here."

Ten minutes later the trio was with Hawke in a fitting room. There were two racks against the wall, one with male cloaks while the other contained cloaks for women. The latter was had considerably less cloaks available than the former. The masks also seemed to help identify men from women as they seemed to give an impression as to the wearer's gender.

Tonks and Fleur both found cloaks which fit them nicely, and both shook their heads at Harry as he continued to awkwardly find a cloak that fit him. Years of wearing Dudley's old clothes had seemed to give him a rather distorted perception of what was the right fit for him. Fleur walked over and quickly picked out a cloak which was just the right size for Harry. The masks all had the same size, but when each of them tried the masks on they simply resized to fit the respective individual's face nicely.

"Each of you will be given two portkeys. The first one allows you to be transported directly into the facility, activated with a tap of your wands. The second is a standard emergency portkey. If you get hit by a Stunner or anything worse, you'll be transported to the medical bay. It also activates on death so nobody can identify the bodies except for us. We have a third portkey which transports anyone we capture into a holding cell, but I'll issue you that whenever you tag along for missions. Now then, after all this excitement I guess I could show you around and get you familiarized with the layout of the place. I'll also need to make sure each of you can access this facility through the doorway outside. I'll bring you out there later so you can tap your wands against the wall and have it register your wand's signature."

Hawke proceeded to show them around the Unspeakables' facility, showing them the medical bay first, which seemed suspiciously close to the training area where the operatives were practicing spells. He then brought them into a room which was completely empty. He explained that it was used to project illusions, which they used to simulate training scenarios. He let them have a go at a simple one involving fifteen opponents coming at different intervals. After he had shown them every area of the place, he led them out to the wall which they had entered by. Each of them took turns to tap their wands against the wall at Hawke's instruction, which concluded their business for the day.

"We'll expect you back here tomorrow at eight." Hawke instructed as they each tapped their portkeys and were transported back to Privet Drive.

8-8-8

Titus appeared immediately at Hawke's side the moment the trio had left. "Are you sure about this?"

"He is the one who must face Voldemort, Titus. Dumbledore is playing a game of chess. He thinks a few pieces need to be sacrificed in order to win the game. His mistakes with Grindelwald have convinced him of that."

"I take it you believe you can win the game without losing a single piece?"

"No, you'll lose some pieces. This is war, people will die. Within the next few months some of us in this facility may die. It doesn't mean the player just throws his pieces away without making sure they can do the most damage to the other side."

"What if that piece is the only one left that can checkmate the other side's king?"

"You flip the whole damn board over - that's what I'm doing; only no one will know I did. Fifteen years to the day, Titus. Dumbledore stood by until he couldn't ignore Grindelwald, he's been standing by thinking that Harry will discover a way to finish the Dark Tosser himself, pointing him in the right way but never getting involved outright. He believes this will stop Harry from being targeted more than he already is. I will not lose any more of my family to the Dark Lord because Dumbledore isn't willing to fight the enemy."

Titus sighed, knowing full well that Hawke was only this passionate about things nobody could convince him otherwise about. "Very well, then old friend, I suppose it's time for us to continue keeping an eye on the next Minister hopeful before they get killed."

8-8-8

It was just slightly past one when they were back in Harry's apartment-sized room. Tonks was the one who had brought food this time around. This time it was packets of fish and chips from a restaurant near her home. The three of them ate in silence, still in awe that the Unspeakables had offered a helping hand in Harry's preparation for the battle with Voldemort. Once they were all done, Fleur cleared the resulting trash with a flick of her wand. It was at that moment Harry noticed Tonks was eyeing him curiously. He raised an eyebrow as if to ask her silently why she was staring at him so intently.

"You need some new clothes. You can't be wearing those rags all the time! Honestly, your only decent pieces of clothing are your school robes, I bet." Harry's reddening cheeks told her she had gotten the right answer. Tonks hair turned a bright shade of red along with her anger.

"Seriously, how did Dumbledore even reason to leave you here? They don't feed you properly, they don't clothe you properly, and you're used as a punching bag for the slightest thing! That's it; I am taking you outside and getting you some new clothes. Fleur, you come along too."

Harry barely had time to protest as Tonks grabbed both him and Fleur by the arm before Apparating out of the room. He barely had time to register the feeling of being squeezed through a hosepipe before he noticed he was out in Muggle London. They had Apparated into Diagon Alley, right outside Gringotts. Tonks pulled him roughly into the bank and headed right up to the nearest teller. It was at this moment that Harry immediately stopped her.

"I'll use my own gold if you insist on dragging me to shop." Harry protested; passing his vault key to the teller before Tonks could. The goblin merely nodded, noting the vault number on his key before leading the way to the carts. Ten minutes later Harry was leaving Gringotts with a bagful of Galleons and a bundle of notes in pounds.

Fleur was already plotting the shopping trip with Tonks in Muggle London. Apparently the French witch used her free time to browse the shops in the area, and knew just where to get clothes for Harry. The young boy groaned as he realized he had just turned into a doll the two women were going to play with.

Over the next few hours Harry was trying on different pieces of clothing. For some reason the two of them insisted that he needed good looking attire even when he would be cooped up in his room most of the summer. He wondered why they were fussing over the material of the t-shirts they were looking at – he certainly wasn't going to be wearing them out on the street. Harry simply stayed silent, certain that it was the only way to end the torment as quickly as possible. Once they had finished picking out his clothing he paid for the whole lot before they returned to the Leaky Cauldron and Apparated back to his room in Privet Drive.

Tonks rounded on him the moment they were back in the room. "I don't want to see you in these rags again, you understand?"

"I swear you're channeling Mrs Weasley." Harry chuckled at her tone. Tonks managed a weak smile before bring a finger up to his face and getting serious again.

"I mean it. Don't waste all the money you just spent. You deserve to wear something that's yours and not just pieces of fabric your cousin no longer wears." Fleur was leaning against the wall watching the pink-haired Auror in amusement. The sun was already setting and it was almost time for her to meet Mundungus for the change in shifts. Tonks quickly disappeared back outside, once again earning her a loud protest from Vernon. The fat man came storming up the stairs before Harry had a chance to lock the door magically.

"That is it! That tart's been coming out of your room every day for the past week! This house is not a place for you to shag your whores!" Vernon yelled. Fleur chose this moment to clear her throat loudly; making sure the wand in her hand was clearly visible. Vernon only got more enraged. "Now there's another trollop inside here! You've had TWO of them in here? I've had just about enough of this!" He moved through the doorway towards Harry, who drew his own wand and cast a Jelly-Legs Jinx at his uncle, who began to stumble about. Despite the weakness in his legs, Vernon was determined to get to him. Unfortunately his current condition allowed Fleur to cast four Stinging Hexes in quick succession, one of them deliberately aimed at his groin.

Vernon doubled over in pain, his hands clutching his groin. Unfortunately Fleur had also targeted both of his hands and face, which meant the action only aggravated his discomfort. She didn't bother with a counter-curse and simply banished him out of the room before yelling at the top of her voice. "You leave Harry alone, you understand? He might show restraint when it comes to cursing you but I won't. The next time you try to attack him I will make sure you feel more pain than you are now." She applied the counter-curse with a flick of her wand, reducing the swelling over the affect body parts in the blink of an eye. The pain, however, continued to leave the large man curled up in a ball in the hallway. Harry was behind her as he continued where Fleur had left off.

"I warned you about insulting my friends, uncle. Be glad she bothered to even reverse what she did."

Fleur slammed the door shut and locked it.

"You know that's only going to make him madder." Harry commented nonchalantly. Fleur gave him a pointed stare.

"Still, I wasn't going to let him hit you just because you didn't want to hurt him! Seriously, Harry, you've got enough to worry about with You-Know-Who back in power! You don't need to be taking abuse from the Muggles! If they attack you, fight back!" Fleur was indignant at the young boy's total lack of any sense when it came to his own safety.

"I would have, but the only ones I could think of what would hurt him were the nasty ones from my parents' journal. The Jelly-Legs Jinx was the only one I could remember that wouldn't cause permanent injury. I would've stunned him but he'd only get back up after I Enervated him. Even you have to admit a broken leg or snapping off a limb is too much. They'd call the police and that'd be the end of everything."

Fleur calmed down considerably after he explained why he hadn't used something more powerful to stop Vernon. She pocketed her wand once more, turning instead to the cupboard where the food was kept. Harry walked over to help her as they picked what was left of the food the Weasleys had sent them for dinner. They ate in silence again, too preoccupied with what had happened with Vernon to make conversation.

After another fifteen minutes of the awkward silence, Harry made an attempt to start a conversation. "So, why did you agree to training with me anyway? You agreed to teach my Occlumency but you don't have to accompany me while the Unspeakables train me."

Fleur looked up and made eye contact. There was a genuine concern in her voice when she spoke. "How could I not? That man, Hawke, made a very valid point. Tonks and I are the only two people you've told about Dumbledore's manipulations. It would not be very kind for me to simply leave you on your own."

"Thanks, then. It really means a lot. I still have to figure out how I'm going to hide the fact that I'm training with them for the rest of the summer. Sooner or later the Weasleys are going to ask me to stay over at the Burrow. The Dursleys will only keep looking for trouble if Tonks has to keep leaving out the front door." Harry got up quickly and started scribbling something on a piece of parchment. Fleur watched the young wizard curiously as he attached a letter to Hedwig's leg and sat back down as the owl left to deliver the letter.

She raised an eyebrow in question. The unspoken question was answered immediately. "I sent a letter to Ragnok asking if I could have a list of addresses of all the Black properties. That way I have my own place to hide. Several places, actually, if one of them gets compromised or attacked. I'll just have to make sure the Death Eaters haven't gotten to the places yet."

"I doubt they have. Wizarding homes usually have very strong wards that prevent anyone from entering the place once the owner dies. If it is passed on to an heir of beneficiary than the place will become inaccessible to anyone until the new owner enters the place."

Harry considered this information. "Still, the Death Eaters may be watching these places in case I show up. The will reading for the rest of the people concerned is tomorrow, I'm sure by the time I have the addresses and scout the locations Bellatrix will have told the Death Eaters I own all the Black properties."

Fleur chuckled. "All the more reason to learn how to sneak into these places quietly. Now, I believe we got you some proper clothing so you won't need to wear these rags, no? Get changed!" She laughed as she ushered Harry into the bathroom while tossing him a shirt and a pair of shorts before closing the door. He shook his head as he got changed and tossed Dudley's old rags away. Only women were convinced that one needed to look their best even at home. Once he was done changing, Harry stepped out of the bathroom only to have Fleur examine him.

"There, you look much better!" She commended with a grin. Harry simply rolled his eyes at the comment and walked over to continue reading the journal. After the long list of spells, his father had written several entries regarding his time in Hogwarts to Harry. There was a smile on his face as he imagined the trouble his father had gotten into with the Marauders and McGonagall's menacing glares each time they were got. He had quite forgotten Fleur was still in the room until he looked up and saw her still sitting there grinning at how easily amused he was reading a journal entry.

"Sorry, I kind of forgot you were here." Harry apologized with a sheepish shrug. Fleur simply laughed and waved off the apology.

"It's quite alright. It's rather fun to see how you can be so happy reading a journal."

"Well, I can't help it. I never knew parents so all I have are stories to go by." Harry replied. Fleur sat a little closer at this, and leaned towards him. She ran a finger through his messy hair with a smile.

"I am sure they're watching over you wherever they are." The sudden contact had caught him off guard, and when he turned to face Fleur he found that their faces were rather close together. His eyes wandered to her lips and he wondered how they tasted. He brought a hand up to her cheek as he leaned in closer and kissed her. It was a soft, tender kiss and Fleur was returning it before he caught himself and broke away.

"Sorry, I don't know what came over me." He managed to spit out.

"No, it is my fault. I forgot what my Veela allure does to males if I'm too close." Fleur waved off the apology. Her eyes were still lingering on Harry's lips despite her words, and Harry was still thinking about the taste of honey on hers before a Patronus appeared in the room.

_Death Eaters prowling near Gringotts, stay away for now. Everyone else is hiding at Gringotts._ The voice of Bill Weasley whispered into the room. The Patronus had been directed at Fleur, Harry assumed, remembering that she was staying near the bank.

"I suppose you'll be staying here a while longer?" Harry asked. Fleur simply nodded; her eyes fearful.

"They don't normally show up in Diagon Alley like that. There've been one or two of them on occasion but mostly they don't bother people as long as they're indoors. If I Apparate there now I'd have a fair distance to walk before I can get to my home. They'd definitely stop me along the way. My Veela allure catches the attention of the men very easily."

"Well, why don't you stay the night and return tomorrow. I'm sure they won't try anything while it's crowded." Harry offered. "You can have the bed."

Fleur smiled at the offer. "You're such a gentleman. The bed's big enough to fit both of us." Seeing Harry's reddening face, the part-Veela just chuckled. "Really, Harry! I trust you won't do anything funny while I'm asleep. Even if you would, I sleep with my wand nearby." She added with a twinkle in her eye.

"You expect attackers in the middle of the night a lot?" Harry asked with a mischievous grin. Fleur laughed at the response.

"No, only when there are teenage boys in my room."

"I believe this is _my_ room. Maybe I should be the one sleeping with a wand under my pillow."

"Oh please, _ladies_ do not attack boys in the middle of the night. We need our beauty sleep."

Harry chuckled while stifling a yawn. "Well, I'm knackered. I'll be sleeping first then – with a wand under my pillow." He headed over to the bed while Fleur laughed at the joke. He spared a glance at her only to see she had transfigured her robes into a nightgown which hugged her slender figure in all the right places and stopped at mid-thigh. He turned around quickly before his hormonal teenage body decided to react any further to it. He climbed over to the side closer to the wall before trying to sleep with his faced turned away from Fleur.

The French witch had seen his brief glance at her nightgown but chose not to tease him about it. She was having a hard time thinking of a proper comment anyway, with her cheeks flushing at his reaction. She was used to men staring at her body because of the Veela allure, but Harry actually managed to avert his gaze and in their time together in the past few days had treated her like any other woman, like a _friend_. She was quite unused to the treatment since growing up with Veela blood had its own set of burdens. She crawled over to the bed before facing away from Harry so he couldn't see her red cheeks.

Muttering softly, she whispered. "Thank you, Harry." A sudden movement told her the boy was not yet asleep.

"For what?" He asked curiously.

"Most guys would not have treated me like you have. My Veela allure guarantees that." She replied, her face still turned away. A gentle touch on her cheek caused her to turn around as Harry looked into her eyes with a seriousness shining in them.

"Well, they're idiots. You're a fun person to be around Fleur, and it wouldn't be fair for me to treat you with any less respect after you've been so willing to help me."

Fleur smiled and reaching her right hand up to stroke his cheek, raised her head to kiss him again. This time it was intentional and passionate. Her tongue flicked out against his lips, and Harry parted them to give her entry. Their tongues met gently, probing around with tenderness before they finally broke away. There was an uncertain look in the young wizard's eye. He opened his mouth to say something but she placed a finger against his lips to silence him. Understanding her request, Harry silenced his protest and simply wrapped an arm around her waist before both of them drifted off to sleep.

8-8-8

**A/N:** _That's chapter three finished! Whew. A big thank you to everyone's who placed this story on their favorites or story alert list. Keep the reviews coming, since it's the closest thing to a beta I have (I'm not the type that likes showing other people my work, to be honest)_

_A few hints about the future plot here and there, see if you can spot them. I'm sure I'm not as subtle as I think I am._


	4. Not Some Schoolyard Duel

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Harry Potter and if I keep typing these for every chapter I'll soon run out of inventive things to put here.**

**Chapter 4: Not Some****Schoolyard Duel**

Tonks Apparated directly into the room the next day, expecting to find Fleur and Harry both ready to leave. The Death Eaters had been prowling Diagon Alley the night before, and had destroyed several shops before the Aurors arrived. They had attacked close to Gringotts though according to Bill Weasley none of the Curse Breakers or wizards who were working with the goblins had been harmed. They had all been warned and were within the bank itself or hiding in their homes. She had spent the better part of that night interviewing witnesses. It was a frustratingly short task as nobody dared to speak for fear of reprisal from Voldemort's followers. Aurors were prevented from simply administering Veritaserum and information gleaned from Legilimency was immediately deemed inadmissible, which only made their jobs that much more complex.

Still, her lack of sleep did not stop her from realising that there were two figures sleeping too closely together in the young wizard's room. The long flowing blond hair of Fleur gave away her identity. She then noticed his arm wound around her waist, which the Veela was wrapping in her own arms. She opened her mouth to scream or make a witty comment, but her brain was rather failing her as it decided its efforts were better spent wondering how far the two had gone in her absence last night. A sly smile crept across her face as she focused on her Metamorphagus powers and transformed.

She slowly crept into bed on Harry's other side and let her own hands run up and down his back and deliberately breathed into his ear.

"Stop it, Fleur, that tickles." He managed to say groggily. As his mental faculties slowly picked up he realised the French witch he had kissed the night before was still in his arms, and there was another Fleur behind him on the bed.

"Tonks! What are you doing here so early?" Harry asked in shock as he removed his hands from around Fleur and began to turn a bright crimson. Fleur awoke with a start simply looked sheepish as she removed herself from the bed and Tonks began to laugh.

"It's seven in the morning and we need to be in the DOM by eight, _lovebirds._ I'm disappointed Harry, I thought we had something good going between us." Tonks teased with an evil grin. She was going to have so much fun teasing the two of them.

8-8-8

The trio had barely entered the facility when spells started flying at them from the direction of the ring. Harry's Seeker reflexes and experience from running the DA last year kicked in as he dove to the side after throwing up a Shield Charm. Fleur and Tonks both dodged in their own directions and soon all three of them were sending countercurses back at Titus. Harry noted that the Unspeakable was casting so quickly it seemed like a continuous beam of multi-coloured light was coming from his wand before dispersing towards each of them. The only other wizard he had seen come close to such speed was Sirius when he had come to his rescue.

Titus barely moved from his spot as their hurriedly thrown curses were either deflected by his shield or missed him entirely. There were cries of pain from Fleur and Tonks as they each went down under a barrage of curses and Harry soon followed after a fist made of rock smashed through the table he had ducked behind and caught him in the ribs. He was lying on the ground with two broken ribs in his side as Nutrix appeared and cast a spell to knit them back together.

Titus was towering over him, shaking his head at the abysmal performance. "I could take the Death Eaters myself if the likes of you managed to hold them off! _Protego_ is good for minor curses but barely protects you against anything those bastards are likely to throw at you. You didn't throw anything worse than a Stunner at me and you expect me to go down? You're going to have to throw your schoolboy thinking out the window, boy! This is war and you either take those bastards down with as much power as you can muster or you'll _die._" Titus' tone was harsh and cold, but Harry knew he was speaking the truth and bit back his tongue. The pain from his injuries stopped him from saying much, anyway. He merely grunted his acknowledgement and let Nutrix tend to his wounds.

"You have a lot of raw power, Potter. Unfortunately it means nothing if your body can't keep up with it. Go see the healers later for a potion to treat your malnutrition. Ask them for something to help you increase your strength and stamina too."

Within the next hour, all three of them were quite sore as they nursed several injuries. Titus had held back seeing as it was their first session, but nonetheless Tonks was spotting angry burns covered by an orange salve after getting hit with a nasty fireball. Fleur was on the floor letting both her legs regenerate the bones from the Bone Shattering Curses she took. Harry was the only one who was reasonably unscathed. His Seeker reflexes and time spent avoiding nasty curses in general helped him dodge the worst of the curses. He had been hit by a brief Cruciatus Curse before sending several Blasting Curses at Titus, who countered them with a barrage of Cutting Curses, Flesh Boiling Curses and a few spells Harry couldn't recognize but knew would not end well for him if they hit. His performance was impressive to the two witches, but he was already bleeding profusely from his left hand while ignoring the protest of the cracked rib on his right side. His duel ended when he caught a nasty spray of acid from the Unspeakable's wand, dropping to the floor with a hiss of pain before the green jet of a mock killing curse caught him squarely in the chest as he landed.

"You guys can't defend, dodge or land a hit to save your life!" Titus bellowed. "You're advertising your next spell even before you cast it, you provide too many openings, and none of you used anything worse than a Stunner! What have I been saying to all of you? Treat me like one of those Death Fuckers! You're supposed to be fighting a _war,_ not some petty schoolyard duel! Now that all of you are recuperating, listen up!"

He continued for the next hour while they were stuck on the floor wincing in pain. He showed them several curses that would drop their opponents once they hit. The acid spray and fireball were good for keeping several opponents on the defensive and providing the attacker with openings to take out those who were closest or most vulnerable. The Organ Decay Curse and Flesh Boiling Curses were almost always deadly, and had the added benefit of forcing the opponents to choose between dueling you or casting the counter-curse on their hit comrades. The Flame Cutter Harry had seen Dolohov a month earlier could be used to separate groups of opponents or to corner one. _Protego _was only good for stopping Stunners and weaker spells. Elemental curses would go through it easily and even the weakest of them would only have their effects dampened. There were different offensive tactics for tight corners or cramped spaces and others for wide open areas. It also mattered whether the caster was surrounded or the one surround the enemy.

Nutrix was standing by Titus' side once he was done with his lecture, and the brute of a man muttered something about the trio's delicate sensibilities while he left. The healers at the medical bay had left the cuts and bruises unchecked at her request, as she thought it was an opportunity to get them started on practicing their healing spells and first aid. Harry, being the only one with no experience, was expected to assist Fleur and Tonks in managing their wounds. After fifteen minutes of failing to mend the cuts or bruises, much to the two witches' irritation, Nutrix stepped in to guide him.

"Healing requires finesse. It's not enough to point your wand and say the words; you have to be intent on stopping the wound, especially if it's a deep cut or profuse bleeding. It's much harder to get it right if blood's spraying in your face, so you have to concentrate. Tapping on your Occlumency should help."

Harry followed her advice and putting the nervousness of having three witches watching him, focused on mending the cuts and bruises along Fleur's arm. Her wounds started to fade slowly. His sense of achievement was abruptly crushed by Nutrix's next words.

"Progress, but if any of those wounds was any more serious she would already be dead. Every second you have out there is the difference between life and death. If you don't master these spells the two of them could very well die like Sirius Black. He died because he was stupid."

Harry's wand turned onto her only to have her hand grab his wrist and stop it in mid-swing. "I see that got you properly motivated. Black's one mistake was taunting Lestrange in the middle of their duel. Learn from that mistake, Potter. We're playing a Winner-Takes-All game here and the stakes your lives. Drop your guard and someone will die. If not you, then someone close to you. If what I hear about you is correct, that's the _last _thing you want. The Dark Lord has a hard-on for you; even we can't help you fight him or teach you how to. He knows magic we dare not even touch. The bad news is he's going to target you, and before that he's going to target your friends and everyone who's ever helped or associated with you. This is _war_, not some petty schoolboy feud! Failure and weakness cost lives."

Harry was seething at her words, but again could not deny the truth in them. His two partners looked livid and wanted to step in, but Nutrix turned around and walked away before they could say anything. He simply continued mending all their cuts and bruises, making progress with the healing spells. Nutrix's words seem to have a rather profound effect on Harry as he resumed the training with Titus. His wounds had mended quickly and he was raring for a second go. This time Harry called on every spell he had learned in the past few days and Titus was roaring with laughter at the end of the session, which had come to a draw after Harry collapsed from exhaustion but not having gotten the better of Titus. The latter had refused to claim the win. "Take that as a lesson: surviving is a victory in itself. It doesn't matter if you have to flee from the Death Eaters, as long as everyone on your end is alive to fight another day – you can count it as a mission accomplished."

During the duel, Hawke and Nutrix were watching silently from his office. The witch simply sighed at the boy's sudden improvement. "He brings out more of his potential when he's angry or someone is in danger or dead. That has got to be worst motivator I've seen."

Hawke chuckled at her comment. "I remember I was like that, once. It took quite a while before I got over that little tic and even longer before I lost my _delicate sensibilities_ as Titus put it."

Nutrix rounded on her colleague next. "You almost _died_ because of it, Hawke. Stop joking before I lose my sensibilities and hex you till you're lying in the medical bay for a week."

Hawke raised his hands in defeat. "I wouldn't dream of it, _mistress_." Laughing uncontrollably as Nutrix shook her head in frustration. Why was it that every man who had survived a near-death experience had to make a joke out of their own well-being?

8-8-8

It was almost four when Titus ended the dueling training. Tonks and Fleur had made considerable progress after they recuperated, taking their trainer's advice and using the more powerful spells they knew and casting their spells non-verbally as much as possible. Harry, however, improved on sheer tenacity alone – lacking training as either an Auror or Curse Breaker, he had instead used raw power to force Titus to be a bit more serious in the duel. At the end of the session the wizard was quite pleased with the trio's results.

"You'll still get yourself killed against the Death Eaters, but your progress is coming along nicely. I'm entrusting you ladies to help him learn non-verbal casting. Hawke wants to see you in his office, Harry."

Hawke simply gestured for him to take a seat as the raven-haired teenager entered the small office. When Harry had settled himself Hawke began to speak. "I thought you might like to the Wizengamot's going to call on a vote of no confidence for Fudge and elect the next minister if it goes through next week. There are many idiots who will nominate themselves or someone in their pockets, but the most likely candidates to win are Amelia Bones and Rufus Scrimegeour. I'm telling you this, because no matter who the next minister is, they're likely going to want to meet you. Now, I expect Dumbledore is going to run interference on your behalf, but they're going to corner you eventually. Scrimegeour is the one you need to look out for, he's likely to try and get you to sing the Ministry's tune. Bones is probably the cleanest politician you'll meet, and if she ever lays her hands on you I'd expect it'd be an official apology for Fudge's mess last year and to see if she can help you in any way. You probably have a few weeks before either of them manages to get to you, but I figured I give you some warning so you can be on your guard, or if you're up to it seek them out yourself and get on the offensive first."

Harry nodded and considered the information carefully before speaking. "I suppose there isn't anything I can do to help tilt things in favor of Madam Bones, is there?"

Hawke chuckled. "I thought you didn't like being mired in politics. The answer is no, not unless you want her to be killed within the next week. Though I suspect You-Know-Who is going to try and kill her anyway. She's been a right thorn in his side since Fudge stopped blocking her attempts at hunting down the Death Eaters. No point in giving him more reason to do so."

Harry nodded before Hawke dismissed him. The trio returned to Privet Drive after the day's events, relieved that it was the weekend and they'd have a brief respite before the training picked up next week. Hedwig hooted as he appeared in the room, sticking her leg out to show the letter attached to her leg. The owl gave him an annoyed look, as if to chide him for leaving her to wait for so long to complete the delivery.

The letter was from Gringotts, detailing the list of properties he owned. It was a considerably long list, and Harry was beginning to wonder how he was to check out each of them with the little time he had before an idea struck him.

"Dobby!" The house elf appeared at Harry's summon, rushing to hug him around the stomach. Harry grinned at the display of affection.

"Dobby missed Master Harry Potter sir."

"Just call me Harry, Dobby. You know I hate it when you address me by Master or sir."

"Yes, Mast- Harry." The elf seemed to be struggling against his compulsions to address Harry formally.

"Can you check out these places for me and make sure they're safe? There might be Death Eaters loitering around. I want you to pick the three safest locations and tick them on this list. Cross out any of them if there's anyone inside or it seems like the place has been visited by someone or it's being watched."

Dobby puffed his chest with pride before saluting Harry and taking the list. "Dobby will make sure it is done, Master Harry Potter sir." The house elf disappeared with a crack as the young wizard sighed at his insistence to address Harry so formally. The two witches were watching him with amused expressions on their faces when he turned to face them.

"What?" He asked curiously.

"I've never seen house elves respond so enthusiastically to a wizard before." Tonks replied with a giggle.

"I don't mind as long as his enthusiasm doesn't spill over to saving my life." Harry replied. He proceeded to regale the two witches with the stories of his second year when he received curious stares from them. The two of them were laughing when he was done telling them about Dobby's attempts to save his life, much to his annoyance.

"I'm glad you find my near-death experiences so amusing." He added irritably, which only caused the two of them to laugh harder. Once Tonks had settled down, however, she remembered the promise she made Harry in the morning.

"Speaking of amusing, I would like to know why Fleur was acting as your personal bolster this morning..." There was an evil chuckle from her as she watched their reactions carefully.

Fleur and Harry began blushing deeply at her question. "Well, it just sort of happened." He offered lamely. Spotting Tonks' pointed glare at Fleur, he quickly added. "It wasn't because of the Veela allure or anything. Well, okay, it was the first time, but what happened afterwards was deliberate."

Fleur stepped in to help explain the situation. "Harry gained my respect and admiration at the end of the Triwizard Tournament. In the past week I've come to know him as a gentleman who hangs around me for who I am and not because my allure is leading him on. My respect and admiration grew into something more at that."

Tonks nodded at her explanation before turning to Harry. "Sirius would have wanted you to live life to the fullest while you can, even with You-Know-Who coming after you. I just hope you know what you're getting into with her."

Harry nodded his head with a serious look in his eyes as he replied. "I would never do anything to hurt her, even if I still need to figure out how things are going to work between Fleur and I. The three of us here are going to be facing the Death Eaters together, and I appreciate the trust and care you two have given me in the past week. The last thing I'd want is to break her heart, Tonks. You have my word."

"As long as you two understand what you're getting into. Now that I'm done with the concerned relative part... I'll speak on Sirius' behalf - _Damn_ Harry! An older witch and a Veela at that!" She laughed at the reactions she was getting from the both of them.

"Well, if you don't mind I'll go back to playing the concerned relative and have a word with Fleur in private."

Harry nodded and took a seat on his bed, delving into his Occlumency practice to distract himself. Tonks cast a privacy charm over the pair of them before turning to Fleur. "I'll say this on behalf of Sirius: If you break his heart, I'll make sure to settle the score even if you're part of this team, understand?"

Fleur smiled and gave a sincere nod of her head. "You don't have to worry about that, Tonks. Veela are fiercely loyal to their partners. I would not do anything to hurt Harry or betray his feelings for me."

"Good. He doesn't have that much experience with girls from what I hear from his friends. Please take care of him." Tonks pleaded, with more emotion than was normal; at least to Fleur.

"Tonks… Do you… have _feelings_ for Harry?"

The Auror was caught off guard by her question. "I don't know. He's lost Sirius, found out that his trusted Headmaster is keeping things from him and even kept his magical abilities limited. For someone who's found himself cut off and alone so suddenly, he's been doing an impressive job of keeping it all together. You saw for yourself how noble he is – he won't even let that uncle of his insult us. I don't know if I have feelings for him in the sense you're implying but I do know that I care about him, a lot."

The two continued to talk for a while concerning the weeks ahead. They had both decided to help Harry fight the huge burden he had and the mess in his life that had come from Dumbledore's plans and actions. Both witches knew that they could not live with their conscience if they ignored the facts in front of them and resolved to do their best to help Harry get to the level of preparedness he needed to fight the war.

It was soon time for Tonks to meet Mundungus for the change in guard shifts, and remembering to cast a Disillusionment Charm this time, she snuck out of the house with the Dursleys noticing. When she was gone, Fleur put together a simple meal from whatever remained of the food packages Harry received. The three of them had finished the food rather quickly despite the fact that there had been a generous amount prepared. Still, Mrs Weasley had prepared what she deemed to be enough food for Harry alone until he joined them for the rest of the summer and it was being shared by three people over the past few days.

8-8-8

In his mindscape, Harry was sorting through his memories of the entire day of training. He decided that everything he learned from the Unspeakables needed to be sorted in a single location within his mindscape and yet be well hidden from prying invaders. He decided to use the Chamber of Secrets, since it seemed to be big enough for him to organize everything he needed and the defenses surrounding it were considerable. The chamber where he had killed the basilisk in his second year was now lined with shelves; the center of the room contained a dueling ring where the memories of the trio's individual duels were played one at a time.

Harry was impressed as he realized Titus had used every movement to establish an advantage during the duel. Spells were sent to force his opponent into a particular spot, or the speed of his casting varied to keep the opponent on the defensive or stall their attempts to gain the upper hand. Not a single spell was wasted on simply trying to hit the opponent. He noted vaguely that while Titus had used several hard hitting curses during the duel, the most powerful ones were almost always on the mark unless one of them successfully dodged it. He also noted sheepishly that each of them had tried to avoid every spell which resulted in them moving away from the low power spells right into the respective knockout blows that ended the duel.

Taking notes of while he replayed the memories, Harry surfaced from his thoughts an hour later to find Fleur walking over with a tray of food. She sat down beside him and they shared their meal in silence. Harry was extremely curious as to what the two witches had been discussing in privacy but decided it was not his place to ask. The more pressing matter was how he and Fleur would carry on with their relationship. He would be at Hogwarts come September, and there was little chance they could continue on as they were. At least, it would be difficult to hide things from Ron and Hermione, and once the two of them found out there was no hiding it from Dumbledore. The only course of action left was to confront the old man before the summer ended. Hopefully the opportunity would present itself in time.

Fleur noticed Harry's pensive mood and placed a hand on his arm. "A Knut for your thoughts?" She asked, wondering what it was that had him deep in thought.

"I'll have to confront Dumbledore sooner or later during the summer. It'll be impossible to hide everything from him especially since Tonks is in the Order and she'll be found out sooner or later. Sirius did tell me that he believed Dumbledore has good intentions even if his actions may prove a little ignoble. Knowing how he's been treating me the past few years, I highly doubt he'll just admit everything. He'll want me to cooperate even if he gets exposed."

Fleur considered his points and saw the truth in them. "He cannot stop you from doing what you've already done. I doubt any of the people in the Order could convince you to do something you're not willing to. As long as you're diplomatic about things, you might be able to reach a compromise or win some people to your side."

The two continued to plan out how they would confront Dumbledore. A private encounter was more likely to glean the truth from the Headmaster but could not guarantee the Order would not hear a different version. Calling him out in front of the Order was more than likely to get evasive responses. There was still the issue of Tonks and Fleur working with him and there would be many people who would object to it. Harry knew that he had the support of Ron and Hermione regardless of the outcome, and Lupin already had his suspicions with Dumbledore. Ginny, Fred and George were likely to stand by him as well. Harry knew that the original members of the Order would most likely side with Dumbledore or at the very least would require a great deal of convincing. Snape would oppose Harry just for the sake of it even if he wasn't on Dumbledore's side. That left the rest of the Weasleys, save for Molly who would require a great deal more convincing than anyone, in the unknown camp as well as the rest of the younger members of the Order.

Fleur cleared the finished meal with a flick of her wand once they were done with their discussion, and the two continued to sit in silence. They both knew the next part of the conversation would be awkward and neither knew how to start.

Harry decided to make the first move. "Fleur, I think it's best you know the whole story before you decide if you want to continue with this." He proceeded to tell her about the prophecy made about him, about how Voldemort had attacked his family with his incomplete knowledge of the prophecy and with it granted Harry the power to fight him. Harry continued to share Dumbledore's revelation that this power was love, however illogical it seemed.

"I don't see how it changes anything." Fleur answered finally upon hearing his entire explanation. Her younger lover opened his mouth to argue before she silenced him with a finger to his lips. "The prophecy was fulfilled because You- oh screw it, _Voldemort_ had chosen to act on it. There are many tales in history about prophecies which were unfulfilled, Harry. You must realize that events aren't set into motion from the moment we're born. Our _choices_, my love, are the only things that determine how the future is shaped."

Harry opened his mouth to argue again. "But-"

"No buts. Listen carefully – _he_ chooses to continue setting store by the prophecy, which is why _you _will always be in danger. You are quite free to run, Harry, to hide and let him do as he wishes. You can evade him to the end of your life and let him win."

"That's the whole point! I can't let him win!"

"Why is that?"

"He killed my parents! He took Sirius away from me! He's kept coming after me and he even used my best friend's sister against me!"

Fleur had a smug look on her face, complemented with a knowing smile. "Exactly, _ma Cherie, _you fight because you are not the type to run and hide while your loved ones are put in danger. You fight him because of your _love _for your friends and family. You have a choice but you choose to fight because the people you love will die if you don't."

Harry finally saw what Fleur meant. "So, it's like being dragged into an arena to fight or walking in with your head held high, even if your chances of dying are the same?"

The blond witch before him smiled at the analogy and nodded. "Yes, Harry, that's the difference. And I choose to fight with you."

"You might die if you come with me."

"He will come for me anyway. If not because I will not bow to the Dark, then because I am a Veela. Death is certain, Harry, whether I die of old age or during this war. Should I run scared from it alone or face it together with you? Veela are extremely loyal companions, there are many stories of Veela who live beyond their lifespans to care for their mate, and join them soon after their deaths. It is another one of the manifestations of love's power. The Veela abilities breed true in every female child and I am no different. I love you, Harry Potter, and I will fight with you until my last breath."

She leaned in and sealed her promise with a kiss on his lips. Harry knew everything she said was true and that it was her choice to fight the war with him. A part of him was well aware he would not want anyone to die for his sake, but conceded that his closest friends were willing to lay down their lives for him. He was loath to let them do such a thing, but he would do the same for them in an instant, just as his mother had done for him. Voldemort was going to attack each and every one of them either for their association with him or because their families were fighting the Dark. Every single one of his friends had probably realized the same thing he just did – they would either enter the arena with their heads held high or be dragged into it. They had chosen to enter it at Harry's side. He could no more force them to leave then the prophecy could dictate his participation in the war.

Harry clasped Fleur's hand in his and planted a gentle kiss on it. "Thank you, Fleur, for helping me see things more clearly. I'm going face Voldemort not because of some stupid prophecy but because he threatens everything and everyone I love; I will do anything in my power to stop him."

The French Veela simply smiled and ruffled his hair. "That's the spirit, love. We've brooded long enough – it's time to sleep. Tonks will be at the will reading tomorrow so we have the morning to ourselves…" A sly smile stretched across her lips as she let the thought run through Harry's imagination. The young wizard smiled and got up to change into a t-shirt and shorts. Her mention of a free morning immediately gave him an idea.

"Would you like a tour of the area?" Harry suggested earnestly. In all honesty, there was hardly a single spot in Little Whinging which held a happy memory in all his time growing up there. Still, a part of him argued, he had the company of a beautiful witch and there was no reason why he could not start making new, happier memories in the neighborhood. Meeting Fleur's eyes, he recognized a spark of excitement in them that told him she had the same idea he did.

For once, spending the summer at Privet Drive didn't seem like such a torturous idea. The couple quickly retired to the bed, Fleur spooning against Harry. Both of them drifted off to sleep with happy thoughts of what they would get up to the next morning.

8-8-8

Harry awoke the next morning with a large grin plastered on his face. He looked at Fleur who was still sleeping peacefully with the top of her head just below his nose, filling it with a strong scent of strawberry as he inhaled. It was pure bliss to wake up with a beautiful witch in his arms and raising his head up to observe her sleeping form, Harry chuckled quietly to himself as he spotted a rather silly grin on Fleur's face as she slept. There was a line of drool running down the side of her cheeks where it joined the wet spot on the edge of his pillow. He gently wiped it off his thumb before plant a soft kiss on her cheeks.

"That's a really nice way to wake up." Fleur muttered groggily with a smile as the actions roused her from her slumber. She turned to face him and pulled his head down for a kiss. Her lips caressed his while her tongue gently probed into his mouth. They enjoyed the feel of each other's bodies and lips for a few minutes before breaking apart to freshen up.

Harry gathered his Invisibility Cloak from his trunk while Fleur was in the bathroom, checking his attire in the mirror to make sure he wasn't dressed "for a day in the sewers" as Fleur had so kindly put it during their shopping trip. He was sure she would have more things to say about his dressing and how he could look so much better if he made some adjustments, but for now he was satisfied with looking presentable enough to avoid any nagging from Tonks or Fleur about wearing rags.

Fleur had come out of the bathroom, dressed in a white blouse and jeans. Harry could just make the hints of her black bra underneath the blouse and knew she had chosen it just to tease him. He chose not to comment on it but busied himself with checking that his wand was in his pocket before handing her the cloak. The Veela witch feigned a look of annoyance as she took it.

"You're ashamed of letting others see me?" She asked with a tone of mock hurt in her voice. Harry rolled his eyes, knowing she was trying to the mickey out of him and refused to let her have the satisfaction.

"You're welcome to try and walk right out of here in front of my relatives, along with whoever Dumbledore has guarding me today while Tonks isn't here." He raised in hands as if to ask if some higher being had it in for him, earning him a good-natured smack on the back of his head.

"Very funny. Let's leave before your uncle can stop you." Fleur answered with a sly grin as she slipped on the Invisibility Cloak and followed Harry out of the room and down the stairs. The young wizard had to make sure his room was locked upon his exit to ensure no one found out what had been done to the room. The Dursleys would have a right fit and no doubt would force Harry to evict the room for Dudley soon after.

Vernon Dursley had just finished his breakfast when his nephew appeared in the living room. He was dressed way too nicely for a simple walk around the area and there had definitely been no time or money for him to get new clothes at any point in the summer.

"Where are you going dressed like that? We didn't give you any money to buy clothes! You've been stealing Petunia's money, have you? She's been missing quite a bit of it this summer." Vernon asked, his voice containing a barely repressed snarl.

"I'm going out for a walk." Harry replied simply. "My parents and godfather left me enough gold that I could probably but over your company a few times over. Why would I need to steal money from Aunt Petunia? It's Dudley who has been stealing it to buy fags."

"How dare you suggest that my son is smoking and thieving just to get a cigarette!" Vernon roared at the top of his voice, drawing the attention of Petunia as well.

"Feel free to check the playground near the park if you want proof." Harry answered coolly. He remembered that Tonks had only set the anti-detection wards around his room and if he provoked his uncle now there would be trouble. "That's where he's been going whenever he's suppposed to be over at a friend's house. He and his friends enjoy beating up little kids trying to have some fun, what a bundle of pride he is, eh?"

Harry did not let Vernon say anything more as he simply turned and left the house before the much bigger man could even think about attacking him. He doubted that Dudley would have to worry about being discovered anytime soon since the his parents were determined to think the world of him. Still, Harry chuckled inwardly imagining what Dudley and his gang would have to go through if Vernon and Petunia did go the playground to check on him.

Fleur removed the cloak once they were a safe distance away from the house, and Harry showed her around Little Whinging. While he had never had the chance to browse the shops nearby before, today was different. He was not in the company of the Dursleys and had his own coin to spend. He also had a rather charming witch walking alongside him which drew many glances from men they passed as well as jealous glares from women. The couple had their breakfast in a small but cosy coffee shop where Fleur complained about the poor quality of English coffee, much to Harry's amusement.

After their breakfast the two of them set off for the park, joking and talking idly while they walked. Harry was quite glad to be talking about things that weren't about the war for once – Fleur talked about her family and how her sister Gabrielle had been wanting to see Harry for a long time while Harry shared with her all the mischief he had gotten himself involved in during the last school year. They were taking a short rest from their walk on a bench when the familiar voice of Piers Polkiss called out.

"What's this? Potter with a _girl_?" He asked with sarcasm dripping from his voice while the rest of the gang laughed. Harry noted with the smallest satisfaction that Dudley had not laughed and seemed fearful of what Harry might do if provoked. Piers took a seat beside Fleur and leaned close to her. "Come with me, sweetheart, and ditch this loser. I'll show you a good time."

Harry caught just the slightest hint of a smirk from Fleur as she replied scathingly. "Harry _was _showing me a good time until you showed up. Do you seriously think that I'd ditch _him _for _you?_ He knows how to please a woman."

The young hoodlum was seething at her reply and made to grabbed Fleur's wrist, trying to drag her closer to him. The French witch simply slapped him with her free hand and caused Piers to jump back howling in pain. To anyone who wasn't looking carefully, they would have missed the small fireball Fleur had conjured in her palm with the slap. It certainly went unnoticed by Dudley's gang who noticed that there was a very angry blister on Piers' cheek.

"So, you need a woman to do your fight for you?" Piers spat in an attempt to recover from the shame of having been given such a hard blow by a female. Dudley's trembling brought a smirk to Harry's face as he thought up his reply to the taunt.

"I'd take you on but if you lost to a _woman_..." Harry's voice trailed off as Piers made to grab him, but right at that moment the shrill voice of Petunia called out.

"DUDLEY DURSLEY JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

The bunch of them scattered in all directions as Dudley was rooted to the spot facing his mother, whom Harry had never seen in such a fit of rage before when it came to Dudley. The neighbours had spotted the commotion and the raven-haired Gryffindor smirked as he imagined the sweet retribution Dudley would now get for embarrassing the Dursleys like that. The thought was made even more satisfying when he remembered the reason why Petunia was even there in the first place. He nudged Fleur and they got up to leave. A part of him who was currently delighting in his cousin's predicament was congratulating Harry on his rather Slytherin ploy. It seemed the Sorting Hat did have a point about him doing well in Slytherin.

The two of them moved away while Petunia proceeded to drag Dudley by his ears back to the house, yelling at him the entire way. He waited until all the members of his gang were well out of earshot and could no longer see him and Fleur before bursting out in laughter. The French witch eyed him curiously.

"Sorry, but it feels great to finally see him getting his arse handed to him like that." Harry explained with chuckle. Fleur smiled at the thought and began laughing as well. Once he was done laughing, however, he took his date's hand and began leading her away from the park. "Harry?" She asked worriedly at his sudden change in character.

"They might come back to get even with me, we'll leave the area and head home after lunch. Sorry about that, I was kind of hoping to avoid this when I took you to the park."

"It's fine, Harry. You're doing a great job of showing me around and having a good time so far. I meant it when I said that you know how to please a woman." Fleur replied with a charming smile that had him blushing profusely, especially at the imagery of her last three words.

"Right, well, here we are." Harry managed to say, avoiding her compliment entirely as they arrived at the arcade. Fleur's face lit up with curiosity immediately as she examined all the different games the arcade had.

"These are Muggle games?" Fleur asked incredulously. Harry chuckled at her childlike wonder and produced the tokens he had just exchanged at the counter. He showed her where to slot the coins so play the games and explained a few of the games to her. He had never gotten a chance to play at an arcade before himself, so the two of them were soon having fun competing against each other. The machines printed small tickets for each game they played and Harry explained that the tickets could be exchanged for prizes. A good two hours later, Fleur was walking out of the street with a pink stuffed rabbit that covered her torso as she hugged it while she walked.

"Thank you, Harry. That was really fun!" Fleur chirped happily. He simply laughed at the look of pure joy on her face, wondering just how much of a reaction Arthur Weasley would have if he was brought into an arcade.

Lunch was a trickier affair as Harry had little knowledge of any restaurants which served good food around the area. A brilliant idea came to him as he realized he had an unfair advantage with his knowledge of the Muggle world when it came to dating witches who weren't Muggleborn.

Fleur looked curiously at the image of a clown in a yellow suit with bright red hair as Harry led her into a small restaurant with golden arches over its doors.

"That was an interesting meal... I never knew Muggles could put a meal together so fast. Those things were hamburgers, you say? What was that drink you ordered for me?"

Harry laughed as he answered her questions. "Yeah, places like that are called fast food restaurants, because everything has been pre-cooked and the staff only need to put the meal together before sending it out. It's not very healthy though so most people don't eat fast food on a daily basis. Children even get toys with their meals sometimes. The drink you had is called a Coke. Again, it's prepared beforehand elsewhere and dispensed from machines like you saw just now. Again, it's not very healthy."

Harry had bought a meal for Tonks as well; certain that she would have forgotten to eat in her haste to return to Privet Drive. Fleur had slipped on the cloak once again as they entered the house. Vernon was taking his turn on Dudley and they used the distraction to slip into Harry's new room. Tonks was already waiting for them inside and the smirk on her face when they entered told the young wizard he would be enduring endless teasing the whole weekend.

The Metamorphagus proceeded to relay what had happened during the will reading. The Weasleys were all extremely dumbstruck to have gotten such a large amount of gold. Their sudden wealth had also given Draco Malfoy a rather sour look for the rest of the will reading much to the joy of the rest. Hermione seemed rather excited to inherit the large volume of books in the Black library and Harry laughed as the Auror told him she seemed more excited about them than the gold Sirius had given her. Bellatrix was livid that Harry was now the Head of House Black and that she had been denied the Black wealth, insisting that Sirius had no right to distribute the gold to blood traitors or pass the title of Lord Black on to a half-blood like Harry. Narcissa seemed to be pensive when she heard her part of the will and Tonks was hopeful that it meant she was genuinely considering the offer.

"You might want to be prepared for that." Tonks warned Harry with a concerned look on her face. "Voldemort could use that to get close to you. Now that Lucius has been arrested she'll be looking for a way to protect Draco and herself. I'm under the impression that she's not as comfortable with getting close to Voldemort as Lucius was, but Moody's always taught us that a cornered and desperate opponent is the most dangerous. Anyway, Ragnok had my family reinstated immediately since your consent was a given. Dumbledore had a most curious look at that. You might want to start preparing your Occlumency shields up when he visits you."

At that, an owl flew in through Harry's open window with a letter addressed to Harry. It was from Dumbledore, asking if it was alright for him to visit at eleven pm the next day. He showed the letter to Fleur and Tonks who agreed to leave the area during that time in case Dumbledore discovered them prematurely. Harry promptly replied to the letter and started going through his Occlumency exercises while Tonks ate. He had been satisfied with his Occlumency shields until the prospect of having to defend against his Headmaster's Legilimency crept up on him. He decided that there was no harm in putting additional defences in place. There was a wicked grin on his face as he created a Hungarian Horntail to prowl the skies around his mindscape, right outside the shield he had erected. Any intruder was about to have a nasty shock.

He roused himself from his exercise to check the book on Occlumency Fleur had gotten him. The book reaffirmed that 'killing' and intruder within his mindscape would give the person a terrible headache and in the case of stronger reactions, cause them to faint, but would not do any lasting harm. Harry reminded himself to create more Horntails around his shield. He considered adding Dementors but his bad experiences with them made him reluctant to have them around his mindscape.

Tonks was done eating and had brought a book back from Diagon Alley with her. It had been titled _The Silent Skill – Non-verbal Magic for the Talkative_. Harry raised an eyebrow at the last word of the title earning a chuckle from the pink-haired witch.

"Oh relax - I don't think you talk too much. I picked it because it was a dead useful read while I was undergoing my Auror training. I know you're the type that learns through doing things but non-verbal magic is just one of those things that you'd have to understand first before you can do it properly. Now, you can read that while I get some of the other things I got set up."

Harry perused the book's first title while Tonks began producing a variety of items from the bag she was holding. He recognized the sneakoscope and foe glass, but could not identify the rest. He returned his attention the book and let the witch do whatever she needed. He figured she would explain everything once she was done.

_Spells may be no more powerful when cast non-verbally, but offer the caster the advantage of not announcing the use of a spell to those around him or the exact spell used. The most obvious advantages of this are in duels where verbal casters often find their opponents ready for the incoming spell before it hits. Other uses of non-verbal casting include but are not limited to: sneaking around places one is not supposed to be, playing pranks or avoiding the attention of Muggles when using magic in their midst._

_All magic is based upon the intent and willpower of the caster. The Cruciatus Curse, for example, requires a desire to inflict pain on an individual and the willpower to maintain the torture for the duration of the curse. While certain spells are dependent on emotion-based intents, such as the Patronus Charm, others require more deliberation from the wizard or witch casting the spell. The wand movements and incantations are a form of expression such intent in words but often require concentration on the caster's part to enforce their power._

_Non-verbal magic is more difficult in the sense that the user is deliberately choosing not to use the spoken word to reinforce the intention behind the spell. Therein lies the obstacle most wizards are unable to overcome – the art of keeping their mind focused on the desired spell. Occlumency is a helpful tool in this regard but unnecessary. Visualising the spell and its effect is a great way to help enforce the caster's intent but verbalising the incantations in the mind would also help create the desired effect._

Harry continued to read through the book, which proved extremely useful like Tonks had said. He began cycling through the different methods of accomplishing non-verbal casting, eager to see which of them worked best. He managed to summon the sneakoscope Tonks had bought silently but soon found that the harder and nastier spells still required his verbal command. Much to Fleur's irritation, he had hit her with a silent Body Bind and proceeded to Stun Tonks silently while she laughed. The two witches then rounded on him when he reversed the effects of both curses and their abrupt duel ended in laughter.

"The problem is visualising the nastier ones." Tonks explained. "If you're going to use the Bone Shattering curse you'd have to imagine what it feels like to have a shattered bone and think about it happening to your opponent. Most wizards don't manage it because they can't quite stomach the thought of it. It isn't easy to cast spells in a duel if you're getting squeamish because you're visualising what happens when you hit someone with the Intestines Knot Curse."

Harry flinched at the image. "You've got a point. So, I'll just have to get to a point where I don't feel sickened by the mental images before I can start casting them silently?"

"It's something like that, like the book said you have to really want to do it to the person. You'd probably be unable to do it to Fleur or me even if you thought about it happening to us because you would never want to hurt us."

Harry raised his wand with a wicked grin and pretended to try it on Tonks. The witch's hair turned red and her own wand came to her hand. "Don't you _dare_!" She warned as Harry laughed and concentrated on an image of Tonks in a bunny suit before flicking his wand. A surprised yelp escaped his target as her clothes were Transfigured just as Harry had imagined them – Tonks had even sprouted bunny ears on top of her head.

Harry laughed at the sight before Tonks flicked her own wand and Harry's chest inflated to give him a pair of breasts. Tonks laughed evilly before Fleur proceeded to fondle his new assets.

"Very nicely done, Tonks, they feel like the real thing!" She complimented the Auror earning her an affronted look from Harry and a loud guffaw from the Auror. Harry smirked as he flicked his wand and Fleur's own pair flattened. The French yelled in surprise as she felt her bra now supporting nothing.

She turned her wand on him and with Harry just had time to throw up a shield charm before realising it did nothing against physical blows. Fleur kicked him in the shin and he had a sheepish look on his face as he reversed the spell. Tonks undid her own transfiguration of Harry's chest but gave him an annoyed look when he pretended to forget about undoing his own one on her.

"You look great like that!" He teased, flicking her bunny ears as she tried to smack him on the shoulder.

"So, bunnies turn you on?" Tonks replied with mirth in her voice as she leaned against him and shamelessly flirted with him in her current form. Her ears had slapped him lightly on the cheeks as she turned and the effect of her wiggling her bum against him was drawing a standing ovation from his nether regions. Deciding to stop things before they got out of hand, Harry ended the spell he had put on Tonks. His reaction had been noticed however, and she was definitely smirking when she turned to face him.

"It's nice to know I have that effect on a young man like you." She whispered in his ear, her breath tickling him as it left her lips. She broke out into laughter seeing his reddened face and Harry could tell Fleur was trying not to laugh at him as well.

"You're not that old yourself, Tonks." He replied dryly, choosing not to respond to the tease.

8-8-8

_**A/N: **__Alright that's Chapter 4 out of the way... Unfortunately there won't be updates for some time since my exams start next week._

_There will probably be a few time skips in the coming chapters since explaining I've pretty much laid the foundation for most of the major events of the summer._


	5. Innocence

**Chapter 5: Innocence**

By the time Sunday evening arrived Harry had gotten used to casting most of his spells silently, though the newer spells he learned in the past few days were still underpowered or evading him entirely. With the guidance of the two witches providing their own practical experience he found himself getting the hang of casting without uttering a single incantation much simpler. Harry found himself pondering why the Professors at Hogwarts had to use such technical terms or follow the procedures in the book when Fleur and Tonks explained things to him simply, but got the point across.

However, as the hour of Dumbledore's approach drew near and the both of them departed from his room, he had half a mind to throw caution to the wind and let the Headmaster know he was getting help from them if it meant he didn't have try to keep up pretenses in front of the old wizard. The Dursleys were all in their bedroom and Harry had snuck onto the first floor quietly after placing Silencing Charms on their doors. He didn't have to wait long as the doorbell rang exactly at eleven. Harry opened the door quickly before any of the Dursleys could head him off.

Vernon was already making a move for Harry when he noticed the old wizard standing in the doorway. Dudley shrunk in terror out of reflex and Petunia backed up the stairs she had just descended. Harry detected just the slightest gleam of mischief in Dumbledore's eyes as he invited himself into their home.

An hour later, Harry was struggling not to laugh as Dumbledore baited the Dursleys with the bouncing cups, saying something about good manners and accepting an offered drink. There was no chance on earth that the Dursleys would have accepted anything from a "freak", and Harry was sure that given the choice between dying in a desert and accepting a drink of water from a wizard, they'd much rather die. It seemed that Dumbledore had come to inform Harry of Sirius' will reading, and while the Headmaster had not omitted the part where possessions were left to others, he had not informed the young Gryffindor about the real extent of the Black family wealth either.

It was infuriating, Harry thought, that the old man could leave out something as important as having shelters and places of refuge he could flee to all over the country. Even strapped for time while he was at Gringotts, Griphook at least sent an owl detailing all the Black businesses and investments. Then again, he had never bothered about the size of his wealth and Dumbledore probably knew that he would have traded all that gold for Sirius and his parents back. He could not decide if the Headmaster was daft or tactful.

Then came the matter of ensuring Harry did have the right of inheritance. While the goblins had assured him that they had done their due diligence in ensuring the legitimacy of Sirius' will, Dumbledore wanted to be absolutely sure the Blacks did not leave some enchantment that prevented anyone but a pureblood from being the beneficiary of the will. Seeing Kreacher once more had caused Harry's blood to boil - before him stood the one responsible for Sirius' death. For a moment, he debated silently whether Kreach, bound by oath and magic to Sirius, was a greater traitor or Peter Pettigrew, who shared a bond of friendship with the man. He was never more tempted to hurt another being.

"Well, that is all, Harry. I'm sure Molly will be pleased to have you at the Burrow, but I'm afraid that might have to wait until next week." The headmaster turned to leave, but quickly turned back to face Harry. "Ah, yes, before I forget - it is my intention to have private lessons with you this year."

"Private lessons, sir?"

"Yes, I believe it is time for me to take a more active hand in your education, given the light of recent events." Voldemort. Dumbledore was about to teach him to fight Riddle? Perhaps replace Snape in taeching Occlumency? Possiblities raced through his head as well as images of him and Dumbledore training in advanced magic together and duelling Tom eventually. Though if that was the case he'd have to hide his new level of magical skill, thanks to the Unspeakables' training.

"What will you be teaching me, sir?"

"Oh, a little bit of this, a little bit of that." Dumbledore answered with a gleam in his eye, the ones people gave whenever they were planning on something mischievious but did not wish to let it on. After Sirius' warning about Dumbledore's secrets, Harry was a bit wary of the Headmaster's words, but detected no malice from them - at least for the moment.

8-8-8

The rest of the week saw a different Harry as he put everything into his training with Titus. Even Fleur and Tonks were surprised at how serious he had gotten during the duels – it seemed that the Headmaster's visit had wound him up sufficiently and Titus was bearing the brunt of it. To Harry, Dumbledore's admission that he had not planned to teach him any magic that would help in duels was proof enough that he would truly be facing Voldemort alone.

"Come on, boy! You think you can take Riddle like this? I'm running circles around you!" Titus taunted once more as a flurry of spells by his opponent was blocked or evaded. Truth be told, Titus had deliberately held back – there had been so many openings to end the duel but the ferocity that possessed the boy had doubled in the past week. There was a determination there that was absent before. He might have been young but he was no stranger to pain, yet for his strong resilience the idiot was still playing nice as far as fighting Death Eaters was concerned.

Harry didn't reply to his taunts, only sending more and more spells at his trainer to vent. His anger at Dumbledore and the fact that Titus was channeling a cross of Snape and Malfoy was enough to get him to throw more and more power into his spells. Still a part of him held back knowing that he wasn't firing at a dummy but a live target and the other curses in his arsenal would put the Unspeakable down for good.

A part of Titus wished to admit that the boy had all the essentials of dueling down – he was making his wand movements minimal, his casting was silent and each spell was aimed at exactly where it should be for maximum effect. Yet for all of the boy's progress in these areas he still had not gotten past using anything more powerful than a Stunner or Cutting Curse. It was time to ramp it up.

"_Crucio,"_ Titus cast the curse not aiming at the boy, but at the French girl. She dropped in pain and some part of him apologized silently for hitting her while her leg was still recovering from the Bone Breaker he had hit her with earlier. Still, he needed results and soon. They had till the end of the summer to make sure the boy was ready to do what it took.

Harry heard the curse and rolled to evade the curse, but was surprised for an instant as he realized the curse went nowhere his person. Fleur's cry of pain a moment later told him what Titus had really planned to do. The bastard had actually used the Cruciatus on her while she was still recovering! Rage boiled in his stomach as he began throwing more and more spells at Titus, who simply blocked them lazily with his shield.

"You're not getting me with all these polite spells, boy!" He growled, and sent another Cruciatus at Tonks for good measure to emphasize the point.

A monster seemed to grow in his chest as the young Gryffindor gave the Unspeakable exactly what he wanted. Bone Breakers, Blasting Curses, Flesh Boiling Curses and every single nasty spell he had learned in the past weeks was instantly sent at his trainer. If the git wanted him to use Darker spells, he would get them.

"That's right! Do what you need to put me down! Stop holding back!" Titus yelled as he immediately had to increase his own pace of casting to block and evade each curse that came his way. He noted with a slight satisfaction that Potter had least forced him to stop using the Shield Charm and resort to stronger defenses.

8-8-8

Hawke and Nutrix watched as the duel immediately grew nasty. Titus had a knack for winding up the recruits, but he normally did so only to ensure that operatives would keep their emotions in check even in the heat of battle against the enemy. Titus was now deliberately angering the boy to push him towards the Dark – not enough to make the boy turn evil, but enough to make his friends and teachers at school wonder. Hawke wondered for a moment if his worry was for the boy or his own comrade.

"Titus is going to regret it soon." Nutrix commented as Harry began throwing Flame Cutters and other curses that were almost as bad as Death Eater trademarks after more taunts and Unforgivables from Titus.

Hawke simply chuckled. "Oh, I don't know about that. You know he enjoys breaking people down as much as most wizards enjoy Quidditch. He'd probably die laughing if Potter managed to fire off a Killing Curse at him. Besides, the boy should have realized from his excursion down here last month that you either put a Death Eater down for good in a duel or their friends will just get them back up. Stunners and Body Binds won't work in a war. When was the last time you used a Stunner to _arrest_ someone?"

Nutrix sighed. "Still, it's been barely a month since his godfather passed away and now he's training just meters away from where it happened. Titus needs to be careful before the boy really goes Dark."

There was a definite tone of hope in her partner's voice when he replied. "I think it'll take more than what Titus can come up with to push the boy over the edge."

"You sound hopeful… That's a first."

"He had just about the same childhood as Riddle's, possibly worse, and ended up a very different person. I've seen the type of Muggles his relatives are. I'm amazed the one incident when he was thirteen was the only one that happened. The Chinese liken such people to the lotus - a beautiful flower that grows in the murkiest swamp. I've seen many wizards end up as thugs because of bad childhood or circumstances, but I've never seen them become _better_ people."

8-8-8

"I'd say all of you are at least good enough to hold your own against the rest of the Unspeakables here and definitely against the Inner Circle. Don't let that get to your heads though – you want to better than them and not on par. Just keep practicing and you should have no worries if you do get attacked by Death Eaters. You've all obviously had experience duelling in a group, you just got to work on getting the dynamics between the three of you." Titus managed to say through his panting as he let the healers tend to his injuries. His arm was a mess of charred flesh. Harry noted with a slight feeling of satisfaction that the healers didn't seem to be as gentle as they usually were with Titus, exacting payback for his aggressive throwing of curses during training against a teenage boy.

Hawke had pulled Harry away once Titus was done. The two of them adjourned into his office where he put up silencing charms and put up privacy wards before he faced the young man sitting at his desk. "The vote of no confidence is tomorrow. If Fudge does get sacked, the Wizengamot has two weeks to deliberate on the nominated candidates before passing an official vote for the next Minister. Right now we can pretty much rest assured either Scrimgeour or Bones will get the seat. We're expecting that there might be a move against Bones during this time. We've spotted one or two known Death Eaters near her home and we expect they'll move soon. If you're up for testing your stuff against the enemy..."

"You're serious? Most people I know would be telling me not to go looking for a fight." Harry left his question hanging in the air.

"The fight is coming to you whether you like it or not, Potter. You're the _Boy Who Lived_ - the one person who refuses to die no matter how many time he's tried to kill you. He can't let you live, not when you're his only failure as far as the world is concerned. That's not considering that damned prophecy. He'll keep coming after you until one of you dies. It's more practical to ensure you can _win _than to play a game of cat-and-mouse with him. _That_ is Dumbledore's mistake. Haven't you seen how Titus treats you during your training sessions? He treats you like any other recruit we get - an _adult_ and a damned good wizard. Just think about what you've been through since you stepped into Hogwarts alone - you've weathered more storms than most adults can say and you've done well on blind luck alone so far, but that's the point, blind luck only goes _so far._"

Harry saw the truth in Hawke's words. He had said those very words himself last year when he confronted Umbridge during their DADA lessons, and to the DA. _We need to be prepared for what's out there._ He nodded thoughtfully before looking up at Hawke. "I'll need to ask if Fleur and Tonks first. I wouldn't feel right dragging them into this without notice."

"A good leader always thinks about his team's welfare. I guess I didn't need to teach you that if the accounts of your misadventures with your friends are accurate. It's not always a luxury you can afford, though. You'll find that out next week." Hawke answered with an evil chuckle. "Oh, and before I forget, we've removed your Trace so you can start using magic outside. I'd keep it quiet just the same. It's a pain in the ass to erase paper trails if you get caught doing something stupid."

There was a small feeling of satisfaction that he wouldn't need to be afraid of the Dursleys or Dudley's gang from now on. While it helped that he was rarely without Fleur or Tonks by his side, he knew that until he put his foot down on the whole lot of them personally, they would never leave him alone, they'd just wait until both of them weren't watching. He had kept his door locked magically whenever Fleur and Tonks weren't around, but that wasn't a permanent solution and depended entirely on Tonks' anti-detection wards holding. He doubted whether his uncle would truly ever let the matter rest, but at least he wouldn't be stupid enough to threaten Harry if he could retaliate in kind.

With that, Harry was dismissed and headed to the healer for his daily check-up. Ever since he started drinking the potions the healers had provided, they had insisted on ensuring there were no side effects for the first few days. It wouldn't have bothered him had it not been for the presence of Fleur and Tonks who eyed him closely while his half-naked body was being examined. The former made him self-conscious with her presence while the latter simply teased him endlessly.

"All signs of malnutrition gone, muscles and body build are developing nicely. I expect you'll be in proper physical condition by the end of the week. You'll have to try and keep an exercise regime going though. Jogging is a good start, maybe two kilometers each day for starters, though you may wish to increase the distance if you find it too easy." The healer instructed kindly while making notes on his condition.

"You might want to jog topless too - I do enjoy a free show." Tonks teased with a laugh.

"Why, Tonks, I believe that the part of the guy you're interested in isn't the part covered by a _shirt_." Harry shot back playfully.

"Yeah but you don't want to go jogging with your bits slapping your legs with every step now do you?" Tonks asked while feigning innocence.

"Or maybe you want my bits to be slapping yours instead?"

"Uh, I mean… Erm… DAMN YOU HARRY." Tonks cried as the mental image had her blushing like a schoolgirl and she admitted defeated. Fleur just laughed at the witch's response. The constant teasing from Tonks throughout the week seemed to have made him even quicker with his comebacks.

"I hope you let me have that honor first, love." Fleur added with a straight face as Harry began to blush at the proposition and choked on his breath. His reaction caused her to start laughing which was when the healer threw them out of the medical bay while shaking her head and muttering something about "uncouth, sex-crazy youths" under her breath.

8-8-8

The trio was quite happy for Friday evening to arrive, the week's training having tired them out plenty. Harry knew that if he were to start an exercise regime like the healer recommended, sleep was going to be a luxury he could only afford on the weekend. Still, a few hours of sleep seemed a fair price to pay for a level playing field against the Death Eaters.

However, all thoughts of rest vanished the moment they returned to the room, where Dobby was waiting for them. The elf saluted Harry with his chest puffed out as if he was a soldier who had just accomplished an important mission. "Dobby has checked all the houses, sir. The Death Eaters be trying to gets in some of them, but the enchantments do not lets them find the houses. Harry's godfather denied entry to anyone but the current Lord Black!" Dobby reported enthusiastically. "They have many nasty enchantments too. A Death Eater lost his eyes after trying to break down the door at one of the houses!"

Harry was glad he had fewer problems on his list now. It seemed Sirius had the foresight of denying his Death Eater relatives all entry to the Black properties, so Harry would not have to worry about walking into a booby-trapped house. The wards seemed to have held against intruders, and he was sure Fleur could help him with adding or reinforcing them. Dobby passed him the list and he looked at the three locations Dobby had circled.

"Wait a minute… Isn't this one near Ottery St Catchpole?" Tonks asked, pointing at the second circled location. The house elf simply nodded vehemently.

"It is well hidden, Miss Tonks! It be in the middle of forest with plenty of land for growing food and livestock! Path is hidden so only wanted visitors can see it. The place still has traces of magic in it, house almost alive it is." Dobby chirped excitedly. Harry had a strong suspicion the elf was imagining doing just that with the land around the manor while they lived there.

"It sounds like a good place to hole up." Harry comment with mutual murmurs of agreement from Tonks and Fleur. "Alright then, Dobby, I'd hate to ask you to do more stuff, but is the place… _habitable?_" He remembered the state of Grimmauld Place last summer and dreaded repeating the process with only the four of them.

"Dobby is glad to help, Master Harry! The place has been empty for a long time, but Dobby can get it cleaned up quickly! It will be even faster if Dobby doesn't eat or sleep!"

The look on both witches' faces told him the thought was abhorrent to them and once again Harry felt glad he had freed the house elf from the Malfoys. "No, please don't do that. Take your time, Dobby. I don't suppose you need help, do you?" After all, he had intended to have Fleur check the wards and add some protections if they weren't sufficient before moving in. Although from what he heard about wizarding homes and the House of Black, he was sure the wards were more than enough to keep any unwanted guests from visiting.

"Dobby can ask Winky sir! She be moping and not liking Hogwarts much. She is wanting to bind herself to a master…" His voice trailed off as if he was afraid to make a request of Harry.

"Are you asking me to bind her to my service?" Harry asked apprehensively. On one hand, an extra house elf would make Dobby's job easier, but he could already hear Hermione's lecture on binding a house elf to him. _Honestly! Harry I thought you of all people would know what it's like to be oppressed! I can't believe you did such a horrid thing!_

"Winky is depressed that she can't serve a family, Master Harry. She is very unhappy at Hogwarts because she doesn't get to tend to the students personally sir. We stay hidden from the students and staff while we work."

"I guess if Winky wants to work for me then I'll take her. I really don't want to keep slaves." Harry replied truthfully. He had suffered enough growing up under the Dursleys to ever think that there was an instinctive feeling of repulsion at the notion of indentured servitude. If he had to keep house elves he would at least make sure they were willing, paid and treated properly. Dobby seemed to shake with glee at his answer.

"Will you be taking Dobby too?" The house elf asked earnestly. The two witches were grinning while observing this entire conversation.

"I guess, if that's what you want?" Harry answered carefully. He had not quite forgotten Dobby's attempts to _save his life_ in his second year and hoped that the same fanaticism would be directed towards the chores and not at his person. He was unsure what to do as the house elf rushed forwards and hugged his neck tightly while jumping with joy at the same time.

"Thank you Master Harry! Dobby will go inform Winky now and we be making sure the house is clean this weekend!"

"Right, we'll probably drop by tomorrow to check it out." The raven-haired wizard added as the house elf disappeared with a loud _crack_.

"That was probably the amusing conversation I've seen someone have with a house elf. Of course, most wizards don't bother with their house elves." Tonks commented with a chuckle. "I'd have thought you proposed to him."

"As long as he doesn't try to save my life again…" Harry muttered under his breath to the laughs of his two companions as they remembered his story of his second year.

8-8-8

"Bloody hell." Tonks exclaimed as she saw the house the next morning. Harry shared her sentiments as well. To say it was huge was an understatement. The entire manor seemed as if it could very well fit Grawp comfortable inside it if there were no ceilings and the rooms opened up. Fleur was checking the wards along the perimeter of the place, which was a good kilometer away from the manor while Tonks and Harry made sure the house wouldn't have any nasty surprises in store.

The raven-haired Gryffindor walked up to the door and found it locked, but right after he let go of the knob the two of them heard a click of the lock being released. The door swung open by itself and the smell of stale air overpowered them as a deep, booming voice greeted them. "The Black Sanctuary recognizes and receives the new Lord Black."

Fleur had caught up with them, drawing a curious glance from the Auror. Surely the wards would have taken much longer to check out if she were going around the whole perimeter. "The wards are powered from inside the house." The French witch waved her wand and immediately there were several blue lights glowing over the grass. "The lights indicate where a runestone has been buried. They're channeling the power from the source to the ward lines. It'll be simpler for me to check for any weaknesses by examining the individual lines running out from the source. Whoever built this place had powerful enemies."

"What makes you say that?" Harry asked curiously. He was wearier of stepping into the house now. Knowing how dearly the Blacks held to their pureblood supremacy ideals, he wasn't sure if he wanted to step into a house containing Dark magic.

"The only times I have seen wards set up this way are in very old ruins dating back to the time of feudal Europe. Some of the war lords of that time were powerful wizards and they set up the wards in this way so they could withstand an attack by the opposing _army_. The wards can only be dismantled from the inside or slowly destroying each of the runestones along the way. The former required inside help and the latter was unfeasible as it allowed the defenders to slowly pick off your forces while you tried to approach the building being protected."

"So basically the Death Eaters could come storming and they'd take forever to get to us inside the house." Harry summarized. Fleur nodded and the trio proceeded further into the house while Dobby saw to cleaning up the kitchen first. The Curse Breaker headed for the basement where she sensed the power source for the wards was housed while Tonks and Harry explored the main hall of the manor. The place was spacious and even the clumsy Auror had trouble finding anything to bump into. She did manage to trip over her own feet while staring around in awe and landed quite painfully on the marble floor.

There were two flights of curved stairs that met each other on the second floor, while there large oak doors stood on either side of the main hall. Dobby had kept each of the doors open and Harry soon saw that the left led to the drawing room while the right opened up to a large study. In between each flight of stairs was the dining area and Harry noted that Dobby seemed to have enchanted a few brooms to sweep that room on their own while he heard the clattering of pots and pans from further in, presumably where Dobby was cleaning the kitchen.

They explored the drawing room first, noting the thick layer of dust that covered every piece of furniture in the room. Tonks opened the windows before flicking her wands and starting a draft in the room, kicking up a large cloud of dust and sending it all out the window with the air current. She covered her mouth with the top of her robes as she exited the room and closed the door.

Before she did, however, a small black book flew out and landed itself in Harry's hand. Letting his curiosity get the better of him, he quickly opened it to find that its pages were empty. As he glanced at the first page, however, ink began to run across its pages much similar to the diary of Tom Riddle. There was an instinctive urge to throw the book away at this but the teenage wizard decided to read the words that had appeared before deciding if it was truly dangerous or not.

_To Harry,_

_If you're reading this then it means you've found one of the Black residences aside from Grimmauld Place. This probably means you're out of Privet Drive or planning to leave it soon, and I can't say I disagree with the decision. Still, I'll have to warn you against going into hiding on your own and leaving Moony, Ron and Hermione out of the loop. If you can trust no one else, Harry, those three are the ones you can always go to. Please don't worry Molly either, you're not doing the Weasleys a favour._

_Anyway, you're currently at the Sanctuary, whether by luck or your own resourcefulness, I'm not sure, but brilliant of you for doing so. This is one of the safest places that I know of, but it has some pretty nasty enchantments and pretty difficult to get to without the Ministry finding out about it, so the Order never used it. That aside, this journal lets you control the wards and leave messages for anyone holding a copy of it (just tap your wand and use a Duplicating Charm, but it has to the done by you and you alone). It's one of the things I found lying around the Black library at Grimmauld Place that I'm sure the rest of my family never found or else they'd have offered it to Voldemort to use. It helped me a great deal while we were trying to work on the Marauders' Map, so you have this book to thank for that piece of parchment._

_The place has a ton of secret passages, detailed in the journal. If anyone ever managed to get through the wards, you'd have a lot of ways to move around the place and sneak up on them. I'm pretty sure there was one or two passageways that led to other Black properties but I've never been able to explore the place. I hope this place serves you well, Harry._

_Unless you've only found this place after your defeat of Voldemort. In which case, congratulations and this place probably has enough space for you to house all your fangirls and visit all of them for a good celebratory shag during the night._

_Affectionately,  
>Padfoot<em>

"That was an interesting history lesson." Tonks commented earnestly as she finished reading the message on the ledger. "And the secret passages... sound quite fun if you're up for a bit of _mischief._" She wiggled her eyebrows at the last word in case Harry didn't get the innuendo behind it.

Harry chuckled at her joke. "When you find one you'd like to be _naughty _in, let me know! Still, makes you kind of wonder how long it's been… I mean, I don't think the Blacks could have forgotten about this place so easily. It must be centuries since someone lived here."

"Judging by the layer of dust in there, I'm not surprised. It's going to take the rest of the summer before Dobby can fix this place up proper."

"Dobby has done two bedrooms, the kitchen and dining area, Miss Tonks." The house elf replied as he appeared beside the Metamorphagus. "House elf magic can clean very quickly. The rest of the house will only take a week at most, but there are many rats that Dobby must remove."

Harry chuckled at the house elf's confession. Dobby's ears had deflated at the mention of rats, as if the house elf was blaming himself for the infestation. "It's alright, Dobby. Take your time. I'm not sure we'll be using many of the rooms anyway. Please make sure you're eating and sleeping properly though!" He added the last line as an afterthought, remembering that the elf would probably need to be reminded each time he was given an important task to do.

"Whoever built this house wanted to keep their enemies out for good." Fleur commented as she rejoined Harry and Tonks. "The wards are designed to kill anyone approaching with hostile intent. It removes all forms of magical concealment or disguises much like some of the enchantments at Gringotts. The anti-apparition and anti-portkey wards are a little closer to the house so anyone who tries to come in directly will get killed at the outer ward line. This place was built to keep unwanted guests out. The ambient magic is very strong, I suspect the manor was designed to retain residual magic and transfer it to power the wards. I would go so far as to say this manor is safer than Gringotts."

"Alright, so we're safe here. What about food and other necessities? I don't fancy choosing between dying from a Death Eater curse outside and starving in here."

Dobby immediately popped into sight in front of the raven-haired wizard. "Dobby can make trips to the village to get food, sir. Pantry has enough space to stock food for the Weasleys for a month. Everything is taken care of sir! Land outside is good for planting vegetables as well. Plumbing is old but still working, Dobby can make it better if you wishes sir." The house elf's enthusiasm was getting contagious and Harry simply nodded to each suggestion.

"Take your time, Dobby. Handle the basic necessities first. Anything else is a luxury." Harry added quickly once more. He didn't like asking the house elf to take on such a heavy load, but there was a long list of things to be done and he only had the weekends to see to them. "Get Winky to help you if she's agreed to come work here."

At that, Winky popped out of nowhere, sobbing uncontrollably and hugging Harry around the legs. "Thank you, Master Potter! You is very kind to take on unwanted house elf like Winky!"

"You're not unwanted, Winky, and I'll be glad to have you, so long as you agree to getting paid."

"No, that is too much for Winky to ask sir! It is not right!"

"No, I insist. Hermione will kill me if I don't." Harry replied with a kind smile, though part of him wondered idly whether his joke was just a joke or if he was actually predicting Hermione's reaction.

A brief exploration of the house showed that most of the rooms were well-equipped for any needs. There was a duelling chamber, a rather well-stocked armory (despite the centuries of neglect the weapons showed) a large dining room and even a ballroom for social events. Most of the other rooms were obviously meant to house guests and close friends of the Black family, for they were all furnished to be comfortable and gave a nice feeling of home, once the trio got past the dust that had gathered and the moth-eaten sheets.

The journal Sirius left him was most useful in ensuring they didn't get lost. It labelled most of the rooms and living areas, and while there was the occasional Boggart or creature that had come to nest in the unused home, it was clear that the Blacks were quite meticulous in ensuring the place could be easily mended and cleaned. It would take quite a large effort to clear the unwanted guests from the manor, but they had the rest of the summer to do it, and Dobby had already cleared the master bedroom and the adjacent rooms. They were quite far from the dining area but a magical stairwell in the hallway right outside the bedrooms shortened the walk considerably. Even the two witches couldn't help but be in awe of the magic that had gone into the design of the manor. This place was just as much built to be a home as it was a fort.

"Harry, you could start another Hogwarts in here!" Tonks exclaimed, dropping herself onto one of the couches as she did so. Another thought seemed to occur to her as she glanced around the room. "There are about as many places for Death Eaters to hide in and attack from too." She added with a frown.

"Assuming they survive the killing wards, maybe. Then there's the fact that no one else knows about this place other than us. Not even that slimy elf Kreacher. First thing I did when I found out I inherited him was to make sure he could never contact Narcissa or Bellatrix ever again. Shit, that reminds me - KREACHER!"

The elf answered Harry's summons and immediately began muttering curses under his breath. Harry shot foul creature a glare before sealing the elf's mouth shut with a curse. "Now, Kreacher, I want you to help Dobby and Winky with the cleaning and you are to cooperate with them, you hear?"

Kreacher nodded with the tiniest motion of his head while his eyes showed nothing but contempt for his new master. Harry smiled and lifted the curse. "Thank you, Kreacher. Go get something to eat first, though."

The house elf didn't bother with a response as he disapparated with a loud _crack_. The young wizard knew that it was probably due to the ban on insults placed upon the elf. The two witches with him, however, were looking at him with curious expressions.

"You're being awfully nice to the elf that betrayed Sirius."

"Kreacher betrayed him because Sirius hated Grimmauld Place and his family, then projected it on the only living thing left to remind him of them - the house elf. I'm simply avoiding Sirius' mistakes. Besides, an extra pair of hands to help couldn't hurt, and I don't feel like putting up with his attitude at the same time either. Might as well be nice and hopefully he'll come around. If he doesn't, then I'll deal with him."

The raven-haired Gryffindor only got nods from his two friends as they understood his reasons for trying to befriend the traitorous elf. However, he could still hear Hermione's voice telling him off at his last sentence. _You can't be serious about killing Kreacher if he betrays you!_

It would be one of the things he'd have to deal with once he was back in the company of his friends. They were all kind-hearted and would oppose his new policy of fighting fire with fire. Sadly, Hawke had spoken the truth in his office - Harry Potter was no longer a child and he knew the risks involved. He might even argue that the stakes were raised now that Fleur was in his life. It was unlikely for his friends to see things from his perspective when they still possessed the youthful idealism he had lost thanks to constant dangers to his life and those around him.

They seemed to take him at his word, and the conversation soon diverted to other matters. The manor was, as far as they could see, impregnable and could easily house the entire Order and even their families. Harry could comfortably include the more trusted members of the DA like Neville and Luna if he so wished, even if getting food would be a problem. Dobby and Winky assured him that they could easily tend to the needs of twenty or so people on their own and tend to any gardening or livestock Harry wished to have. The idea of the manor being self-sufficient when it came to the necessities was a good idea, everyone agreed. Even if it was highly unlikely that Voldemort would have the resources to attempt to starve the inhabitants of the manor out, they'd prefer not to risk venturing out to get food. It was paranoia worthy of Moody to think that the enemy would be lucky enough to know where they'd be trying to get their food from, given the fact that they were no Purebloods who were "above" getting food from Muggle supermarkets.

"Well, in that case, I might work on inviting a few people to stay here. Dumbledore told me the Burrow has been given every manner of protection and is currently the Order's new headquarters, but I'd prefer it if the Weasleys had a place to go to if they got attacked. Hermione, Neville and Luna are probably going to be targets too for being part of the Ministry Six as we're being called now, and I'm positive that the Grangers at least don't have that kind of extensive protection."

Tonks and Fleur smiled at Harry's monologue. He looked up to see their expressions and was puzzled. "Do I have something on my nose?" He asked suspiciously.

"No, we're just very impressed. No one in the Order even suggested guarding those three. They were rather... preoccupied with _your _safety."

Harry frowned. "That's exactly why I'm doing this. Everyone gets so caught up with protecting the Boy Who Lived they forget exactly how Voldemort got me to go to the DOM in the first place: threatening people I care about. All the more reason to see to it myself."

"I love men who take charge." Tonks teased at the determined tone Harry had adopted when talking about his friends' protection. "You know you sound _hot_ when you talk like that?"

"Oh? You'd like me to talk like that more then, start giving instructions and orders? Perhaps in _private_?" Harry whispered back to Tonks, trying to make his voice husky. He failed, but achieved the intended effect regardless. The metamorphagus was getting flushed at the images he had put in her head and Fleur giggled when Tonks didn't reply.

"I think you broke her, Harry." Fleur added with a light laugh before snapping her fingers in front of Tonks' eyes, snapping the Auror out of her fantasy and colouring her cheeks further as she realised she had fantasised about a witch's boyfriend right in front of her.

"You need to stop that Harry, before one of us gets burned." Tonks chided him softly. Fleur raised an eyebrow at the comment, but did not say anything. The pink-haired witch understood it to be her tabling the issue for a later date, or perhaps when Harry wasn't around.

The Gryffindor Golden Boy blushed when he realised that Fleur might have taken offense to his flirting with Tonks. The French witch simply kissed him on the cheek and smiled. "I don't mind, Harry. I know where your heart lies." She replied to the unspoken apology. "I'm not opposed to sharing you with Tonks either." She added with a wink to the other witch, causing both of them to blush.

"Right, er, I'll go get our things and then we can head off to Diagon Alley to see to the rest of my plans for today." Harry darted out of the dining area they had been chatting in and left the room. Fleur took the opportunity to move closer to Tonks.

"I meant what I said, Tonks. I can sense his affection for you, and it's well beyond that he shows to a friend." The Veela whispered in her ear. "Were it any other wizard, I might doubt that he could truly love both of us at the same time, but Harry is... special. I can't think of any other word to describe it."

The young Auror could not believe what she was hearing. Fleur was giving her permission to date her boyfriend, to share him! While she could not deny her feelings for the boy, she had kept herself in check despite the flirting, having had many silent arguments with herself about making any moves on Harry. The other witch seemed to have read her mind and anticipated all the protests she wanted to make, judging from the knowing smile that crossed her features. "People like to say love is blind, no? I'd like to think love sees _more_ and hence chooses to be blind."

"Think about it, Tonks. I'll talk to him, and you need to as well. If we are going to do this together, this needs to be decided either way."

The younger witch showed more wisdom than her age implied, though the Auror wondered for a moment if it was due to her Veela nature that Fleur knew so much about affairs of the heart, and read the affections of people with such ease. She was right, though - to leave her feelings for Harry unsettled was doing all three of them a disservice when they were going to be fighting together for the forseeable future. It was best they laid all their cards on the table with each other.

8-8-8

It was a great risk entering Diagon Alley in the middle of the day, where someone from the Order might recognise him. Fortunately Harry had the foresight to bring his Invisibility Cloak along, and Tonks had disguised herself using her abilities as well. Fleur was the only one without a disguise, but as she was still working at Gringotts to anyone's knowledge, her presence there would not be questioned.

"I'll go pack some of my things from the apartment, if the Death Eaters haven't razed the place to the ground already." Fleur made her way down the alley in the direction of Gringotts, but not before giving Tonks a wink. The older witch took it as a signal that Fleur was providing her with an opportunity to clear the air with Harry in private, and that her packing would take a rather long time.

"Alright, we'll meet in the Leaky Cauldron. If you feel like you're being watched or followed, Apparate back to the mansion immediately. We'll return if we don't see you within the hour." Harry reminded his girlfriend, who simply gave a reassuring smile and nodded.

Tonks wanted to speak, but they had come to Diagon Alley for a reason. The pair of them headed off to the twins' joke shop. The rest of the alley was pretty much deserted, with a sparse handful of people hurrying about their shopping. It was obvious that after the last Death Eater attack here, nobody wanted to be caught in the middle of one. In fact, most of the shops along the street were either closed or heavily damaged. One of the busiest commercial areas of wizarding Britain, and Fudge had left it largely unguarded. Harry spotted a handful of Aurors patrolling the street, but he doubted that they'd last against a determined attack from the DA, much less the Death Eaters.

Tonks was the one who opened the door, not wanting to alert others to the presence of her invisible companion. The twins were quick to respond to the bell that announced her entry. She shifted back into her usual form once she was satisfied no one was watching from the outside. Before the twins could greet her, Harry had whipped off his cloak as well.

"Blimey, Harry! Aren't you supposed to be still living with the Muggles?"

"I was never here, you understand?" Harry whispered harshly at the twins. "I'll have Tonks obliviate you two otherwise." She already had her wand out, ready to do the Memory Charm at the slightest provocation from the twins.

"Well, normally we'd be in for a little bit of rule breaking, but you're not supposed to be..." Fred began, only to be silenced by a raised hand from the young Gryffindor.

"I know, but I'm here with Tonks and nobody knows we're here except you two, so do we have an understanding?"

Once both the twins had expressed their agreement, Harry produced a stack of parchment from his robes. "I brought a gift for you two, an additional investment to the shop, really." He passed it to the twins, whose eyes widened at the title at the top of the list.

"IS that..." George began, but seeing that smirk from the younger wizard's face confirmed his suspicion.

"Padfoot's plans on pranks the Marauders were working on before they graduated."

"Bloody hell, Harry, this is a gold mine! Forget what we said earlier, you should've come earlier!" Fred could not suppress his excitement at the wealth of information the pieces of parchment contained.

"Not so fast, there are conditions to this. Firstly, you're going to use whatever ideas you get to invent some pranks that can be used against Death Eaters. Second, if you come up with anything, let me know and see if the Order can use it too. Third, this was all _your _idea."

"You are a _visionary_, Harry! Pranking Death Eaters in the middle of a war! Mom will be ranting for days at the sheer insanity!" George laughed. "I knew we found a kindred spirit when we decided to give you the Marauders' Map. Consider it done, Harry."

8-8-8

Fleur did not actually need that much time to gather her things. After all, she had left her clothes neatly packed and ready to flee in a moment's notice ever since Bill Weasley had warned her about Voldemort's return, and especially since the night of the Death Eater attack. She checked the wards she had left at the door, a precautionary measure she had only recently begun. Satisfied that no one had attempted to gain entry into her apartment, she unlocked the door and with a flick of her wand, had her packed trunks floating in front of her, with some of her loose possessions and toiletries packing themselves before the trunks closed shut. Since Harry would be moving to the manor, it made little sense for Tonks to keep up the charade of guarding him in secret at Privet Drive and for the two witches to Apparate there each morning when they could all be safe in one location.

She shrunk the trunks and pocketed them, while producing a few coins from her purse and leaving them on the dresser. It was more than the rent she owed the landlord, but she felt that a little goodwill was in order, especially when the coin would help him if he ever needed to flee the Death Eaters again. She left a short of note of thanks, explaining that she was unlikely to return - before heading to her next destination. If she were honest with Tonks, she had slightly ignoble reasons for letting the two of them have their privacy. Fleur had a plan of her own, and needed Harry to be away in order to make her preparations. After all, it would not do for him to find out what she was planning before she was ready to let him know.

Her next stop was on the way to the Leaky Cauldron, and nowhere in sight of the twins' joke shop. Unless Harry and Tonks were chased down this way by Death Eaters, they would never know that she was making a side trip. She opened the door and headed in, a glass vial in her hand and a rather peculiar request for the owner of the shop on her lips. Five minutes later, the French witch stepped out of the shop with a satisfied smile on her face. It had taken a bit of coaxing, but the shopkeeper had agreed to make an attempt to fulfill her request.

8-8-8

Their business with the twins concluded, the duo resumed their disguises and concealment and headed straight for the Leaky Cauldron. Harry had thought Tonks was a little too eager to get there, and wondered if something was bothering her, but did not ask about it. She just seemed to be nervous and knowing that they were out in the open made him feel a little on edge as well.

Their trip to the Leaky Cauldron was interrupted, however, by an explosion ringing out behind them, in the exact direction of the Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes. They shared a look of horror, or as far as that was possible while Harry was invisible, before starting off for the joke shop at a run, wands out and ready. Harry had put on his mask and pulled the hood of his cloak up as he removed his Invisibility Cloak. As much as being invisible put him at an advantage to surprise the attackers, it would mark Tonks as the only target.

They arrived at the scene of a Death Eater attack shortly, though it was apparent that the explosion was not due to one of their curses, but rather another of the twins' pranks. It seemed that despite their love of humour, they were not complacent about their own safety, especially when they knew some of their advertisements were meant to ridicule Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Harry would have laughed at the bright pink cloaks the Death Eaters were now wearing, along with great many wands scattered on the floor. It seemed that the few unlucky bastards who dropped their wands when the trap triggered would have trouble finding them now.

The twins were not simply watching their pranks being set off either. They had opened the door of the shop only to send several of their trademark fireworks flying in the direction of the Death Eaters. Remembering the huge amount of righteous chaos they had caused for Umbridge not too long ago, Harry could not help but chuckle at the futile attempts to blast, vanish or destroy the fireworks. When it was apparent that their methods were not going to work, Riddle's followers decided to up the ante and started throwing Dark curses both in the direction of the shop and the fireworks heading for them.

Harry and Tonks sprung into action, hitting the closest Death Eaters and forcing them to respond to a new pair of opponents to contend with. Their initial fluster at dealing with the twins' gimmicks at given both of them enough time to send a great number of debilitating curses at the throng of Death Eaters. Three of them were already down on the floor, motionless. Neither the young wizard nor the older witch bothered to check if they were dead or alive. There would be time to count the bodies later. There were still five more Death Eaters to contend with. Two of them had turned around, looking to engage them with even numbers.

Harry and Tonks did not even break the pace of their advance as they both picked the same target and calling on every bit of training they had gotten in the past two weeks, started throwing a huge volume of curses, mostly at the same target. When the opponents were of unknown skill and ability, it was wiser to overwhelm them individually with concentrated firepower rather than dividing it amongst different targets, especially between small groups of combatants. The fool never stood a chance as the sheer ferocity of their combined attack was impossible to evade or block, short of conjuring multiple walls in seconds.

It became apparent, however, that while the Weasleys' fireworks had great potential for causing mayhem, it was also a dangerous weapon in a fight. It had seemed that Fred and George had the foresight to charm the fireworks not to stray out of the area around their shop, exercising enough restraint to prevent innocent bystanders from getting caught, it also prevented Harry and Tonks from reaching them unless they dealt with the remaining foes in their way. It was clear to all four of them soon enough that the remaining Death Eaters were still standing because of their skill and not dumb luck. Even with the amount of improvements the Unspeakable trainees had made, they were still barely gaining any ground against the Death Eater they fought.

A stray firework managed to catch one of the four remaining bastards as he turned to help his comrade duel Harry and Tonks, but it was soon apparent that there would be no more lucky shots like that happening any time soon. Fortunately, Fleur had heard the explosions too and was rushing to aid her friends. The French witch had reach her two partners first and began adding her own spells to their barrage.

Recognising that the window for a successful attack had long passed, the three remaining Death Eaters quickly activated their portkeys and escaped, leaving their fallen allies behind. With a quick nod to Tonks and Fleur, the trio fanned out to check on the bodies on the floor to ensure the threat was over. Harry had chosen not to risk anything, and threw Stunners as he neared the pair of bodies closest to him. He glanced over at Tonks, who was checking on of the fallen Death Eaters.

A flash of movement to his right had Harry running at Tonks. It seemed that one of the Death Eaters who had been caught in the explosion had managed to duck around a corner without their notice, and was now bringing his wand down, ready to curse the nearest person - Tonks. Harry leapt forward and tackled Tonks to the ground, feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end from the curse that _missed _him by the barest of margins. Before the attacker had the chance to send another curse to finish the job, Fleur and the twins had sent multiple spells flying his way. There was a cloud of dust from their counter-attack, but the lack of a body when it settled was proof enough that the lucky tosser had managed to escape in time.

Harry's tackle had caused him to land on top of Tonks, and as the two shared a moment of eye contact, the relief of find the other safe overwhelmed them, as did the feelings they had kept hidden. Before either of them knew what they were doing, their lips met in a chaste kiss, quickly deepening within a second with the fear of knowing how close they had come to losing the other. It wasn't until the twins began catcalling that they realised what they were doing and broke apart hastily. Despite their disguises, the twins knew who they were - they were probably the only two wizards close (and brave) enough to respond to a Death Eater attack so quickly.

Both of them got to their feet and caught Fleur's eye. There was no jealousy or anger in her eyes, only a knowing smile. She turned around and focused on clearing the rubble and ensuring the Death Eaters were truly incapacitated. The Boy Who Lived turned to the Auror beside him, only to have her turn away with a sheepish smile. He turned back to the scene of destruction only to spot the contingent of Aurors heading towards them with hurried footsteps. He grabbed the pink-haired witch's hand before dashing over to the twins' and whispering a harsh warning in their ear. "Not a word to anyone from the Order, and you don't know who helped you out today! I'll explain the next time we meet." Before giving Tonks the signal to apparate back to Privet Drive as he mouthed their destination to Fleur, who simply nodded and followed suit shortly after.

8-8-8

Their hurried departure had caused Tonks to apparate straight into the Dursleys' living room, where they were all watching the telly, instead of Harry's room where no one would have been wiser to their coming and going. It was with a surprised yelp that all three Muggles in the room jumped in shock, first at the sound of the apparition, then at the disheveled look and glaringly _abnormal_ cloaks the pair of them wore.

Vernon Dursley was the first to spring into action as he jumped for Tonks, who was closer. "You trollop! How dare you do _that_ in my house?"

He did not have much time to do much else, as Harry lashed out with his wand and sent the obese bugger flying off of the witch and crashing against the wall. Dudley had risen out of instinct, but shrunk back immediately the moment the tip of Harry's wand was pointed at him.

"Give me a reason, Dudley, and I'll make you wish I hadn't saved you from the Dementors last summer." He growled. His eyes left Dudley's only for a moment, to ensure Tonks was fine, before they returned with an intense fury focused on Dudley. If the idiot knew what a Basilisk was, he would have found less daunting to look in its eye than Harry's at that moment.

Vernon had grabbed the poker standing by the fireplace, despite having boarded it up a long time ago, and pointed it at his nephew as he moved to stand between the freak and his family. "You dare threaten my boy? You dare to give us this attitude after you bring your _whore_ in here?"

There was a loud clang of the poker dropping to the floor as the poker grew red hot and forced its wielder to drop it or risk it melting his skin. The Dursleys then heard the cold malice punctuating each syllable of Harry's words, and were frightened into silence. They had never heard such dark fury spilling off of him.

"I've had to survive attempts on my life every year while I was at school, _uncle._ I've survived so far and you don't scare me, not in the least. I've put up with your _bullshit_ only because I can't - no, _couldn't _- do anything about it so far. Things have changed, and just minutes ago I killed a few men who were trying to do the same to my friends, and they were _freaks_ like me. Do you think you stand a chance, Dursley? You're only alive because you're not worth the effort."

It took every ounce of willpower to turn away and head back up to his room. Perhaps it was the adrenalin from the previous battle that fuelled his rage, but he had been close to using the Cruciatus on his relatives. It would be the first time he'd cast it on someone powerless to resist. He had only refrained from doing so because it was the kind of thing Voldemort and his Inner Circle would do, and Harry refused to become like them.

Fleur was inside his room, having been more calm when she apparated and had not missed her intended destination. There was little doubt that she heard the exchange and was visibly concerned about him. "Could you two help undo the spells on this room? I don't see a point in lingering a moment longer than I have to." Harry proceeded to gather up his things as the witches began waving their wands and dispelling all the enchantments upon the room that had turned it into a small apartment.

"Crap, my Firebolt's still in the cupboard under the stairs." He sighed. Fleur laid a hand on his arm and smiled reassuringly. She knew he did not look forward to going back downstairs and was heading back down when the door burst open and knocked her back forcefully.

His uncle's face was bright red with anger, and one of the Dudley's baseball bats in his hand. Spotting the French witch knocked back on the floor, he let out a bellow, incensed further by the presence of _another _one of the "freaks". "There's another whor-"

Vernon had no time to complete his sentence or the swing of the bat towards Fleur as Harry blasted him back out where Petunia and Dudley were watching. The bastard had justed attempted a deliberate attack with a fucking _weapon_. He had hoped intimidation would have worked, but apparently his uncle was well beyond rational thought. He had immediately gotten back up and was advancing with the bat once again, after all. It was a pity the Gryffindor wizard had no intention of letting his uncle anywhere near either of his lovers.

He did not even note the inclusion of Tonks in that category as he caught his uncle's arm with a Crushing Hex, causing the bat to drop as the bones in Vernon's upper arm shattered from the force of the spell, falling limply to his side. His aunt had fainted at the sight and Dudley lost the strength to stand as his father crumpled to the floor in pain with a great yell. Harry closed the distance as he did and lashed out with a foot, breaking his nose. There was another cry of pain and a loud string of curses between ragged breaths.

If Dumbledore was there, he might've feared for his student's mental stability. Harry had his wand pointed at the miserable bugger that had caused him so much pain in his childhood and was filled rage, fuelled and amplified by the attempted and actual attack of his two witches. The incantation of the Killing Curse was on his lips before he could even stop himself and consider the horror of what he'd just done. "Avada ke-"

"Harry, no!" Tonks rushed forward and grabbed his arm, finally shaken out of her fear at his display of power when she spotted a dangerous look in his eye - she had seen it briefly during their training sessions whenever Titus pushed him to the edge where he started throwing out his nasty curses. She was moving to stop him because she knew exactly what he was about to do even before he began uttering the words to the curse.

He was snapped out of his rage by her words, and her arms wrapped protectively around him. He looked down to see Tonks' tear filled eyes pleading with him not to follow through with what he was doing. Shock and fear gripped him as he sunk to the floor. He knew without a doubt that had Tonks been just a moment later, he would have killed his uncle in a fit of rage, and lived to regret it.

"He's not worth it. He's not worth going Dark, no one is." Tonks whispered in his ear as she placed her hands on either side of his face, and bringing it to rest against her chest as he trembled with fear. He had nearly snapped, had his feet halfway into the first step down the path that had made Tom Riddle Lord Voldemort.

Fleur had gotten back up and fixed the cut on her face from when the door crashed into her. With a flick of her wand, the last of Harry's possessions were packed into the trunk and his Firebolt was summoned from the cupboard downstairs, with the sound of the cupboard door giving way to the force of the flying broom.

"I nearly... I almost..." Harry managed to wheeze out between his gasps for air. The rage had left him, only to be replaced by an overwhelming fear at what he had almost done. Sure, his uncle had attacked Fleur, but the fact did not ease the knot in his stomach. The truthful part of him knew that he _wanted _to kill his uncle, not just for the assault but for everything he had suffered while living at Privet Drive. A part of him reveled in the power he held for that brief moment, when he held his uncle's fate in his hands. A dark part of him very much resembling Tom Riddle had risen in the depths of his heart. Tonks planted a kiss on his lips, gentle and chaste but full of affection to let him know she was there with him.

"But you didn't, Harry. That's all that matters. Now get up, and we can this piece of _hell_ behind." As she helped her up, she noticed that Fleur was standing over the Dursleys, her usual beauty gone, and her face now twisted with avian features. Perhaps it would have been more merciful to let Harry kill the poor git, as all three Dursleys were probably never going to have another night where they did not wake up screaming from the sight of a half-woman, half-bird with fireball in her hands glaring at them.

The Auror laid a hand on the Veela's shoulder before the avian features subsided slightly, just enough for Fleur to speak in a cold voice. "Cherish your life, Dursley, because you would've lost it had my partner here not restrained Harry. We'll be leaving, and you better pray you don't see us again."

Without another word or regard to Vernon Dursley's wounds, the trio disapparated to the Sanctuary.

8-8-8

**A/N: **_After a really long break... I'm back! No, I haven't abandoned this story. I apologise for the long hiatus, but I had my A levels as I mentioned earlier and then Skyrim, Battlefield 3 and Assassin's Creed Revelations came out, and the holiday seasons. It didn't help that this chapter gave me a lot of problems as I couldn't help but think certain parts of it felt... wrong, forced and I had to keep editting it until I was satisfied._

_I'll try to update regularly from now on, although I can't promise anything since SKYRIM._

_A big thank you to everyone who has reviewed and given me your feedback, especially those who take the time to give me a few paragraphs of solid advice and suggestions. I do read every one of them even if I don't reply most of the time. If you noticed a change in the writing it's probably because I do make an effort to improve based on criticism, provided it's constructive and respectful, of course._

_A reviewer asked me if I would be including Narcissa as a love interest for thsi fic. The answer is probably not. I only planned on this being a Harry/Fleur/Tonks ship and it will probably stay that way, tempted as I am to write in a harem and include loads of smut. Sadly that'll probably have to wait for a different fic, one where I have absolutely no idea for a plot except that Harry gets to shag a whole of witches._

_Keep the reviews coming and happy holidays to all of you! I do hope 2011 was a good year for all of you and you all enjoy the festive season!_


	6. Emotions

**Chapter 6: Emotions**

Fleur and Tonks were worried sick.

Upon returning to the Sanctuary, Harry had disappeared from sight and had kept to himself the entire day after bringing his things up to his bedroom. The look in his eyes had conveyed all of his fear and shame at his reaction to his uncle's assault earlier. They both knew of his connection with Voldemort and they knew he feared that he was slipping or worse - that his mind was once again vulnerable to the Dark Lord's attacks.

An hour had passed and it was well to the point where they might have believed they were alone in the mansion had Harry not returned with them. They had wanted to approach him and offer comfort, yet found themselves at a loss for words. No one could honestly say they knew what the young man was going through - having a backdoor to a Dark wizard's head, nearly killing a relative responsible for years of abuse and the protests the other members of the Order would raise once they heard of his escape. Tonks knew she'd stand up and help him make his case with the Order even if she was the only one doing so, but the fact remained that Harry was not having an easy time of things and the weight of the world was resting on the shoulders of a young wizard, almost literally.

Fleur got up suddenly and headed towards the main bedroom. Tonks followed suit, though she did not know how much of a help she would be. The French witch was adept at dealing with emotions, possibly due to her Veela heritage, but Tonks was just as clumsy in this respect as she was physically.

"Harry?" Fleur called out nervously, tapping on the door. She gave the catch a try before finding the door unlocked and opened it. He sat on the edge of the bed, deep in his thoughts with his trunk and Firebolt on the floor where he left them. He only noticed the presence of the two witches when they entered the room. Fleur tried to start a conversation once more. "Are you alright?"

"I... I don't know." Harry admitted. "I almost killed my uncle, part of almost _enjoyed _it; the feeling of empowerment, knowing his life was in my hands and I could take it on a whim. I felt so much like _him_."

"What do you feel now?" Fleur asked, taking a seat beside him and placing her arm around his shoulder.

"Afraid, mostly. What is everyone was right, and I'm really losing it? What if I'm going Dark?" The fear was palpable in his voice as he spoke, and Tonks felt as if she was inhaling it as if it were an airborne sickness. "At the same time I feel... _justified. _A part of me keeps thinking my uncle would not have hesitated if the roles were reversed. I feel ashamed for even thinking it."

Tonks spoke up this time, and took a seat on Harry's other side, before lifting his chin up so he was making eye contact with her. "I know how that feels like, Harry. Every Auror deals with it at some point. We chase down a Dark wizard and they run or fight back, and leave us little choice but to do the same. Moody kept telling us last year that if we ever ran into the Death Eaters, don't second guess ourselves after - it's kill or be killed and as much as we like to think that we are the good guys and the noble heroes, the truth is that the moment the first lethal curse is sent your way, all that matters is that it's either _you _or _them _who walks away."

"He was down! I could have just let it go then!" Harry replied, getting up from the bed and pacing around the room. "I _wanted_ to do it, to end his life right there and then! It was the same as when Bellatrix killed Sirius last month! Only this time, I was about to take her advice about _meaning it_."

"Honestly, Harry, I saw the look in his eyes when he was about to hit Fleur. I've seen it before in some of the scumbags I've arrested. We've both seen the scars on your body, Harry, remember? Anyone else would've fought back and in all likelihood, ended up killing or maiming their abuser in the attempt."

"Tonks is right, Harry. You've suffered years of abuse and neglect silently. Nobody can bottle up all that pain forever, even with Occlumency. Emotions are like rivers, you can build a dam and keep it back but if it breaks, all hell breaks loose. What is important is that it's all in the _past_. Those Muggles have no hold over you now, and both of us are here to shoulder your pain with you." Fleur added as Harry stopped his pacing and settled back down.

"It's not fair that you have to." He protested weakly.

"Have to? We don't _have_ to, Harry. I could have simply done my job at Gringotts weeks ago and left the room. Tonks could've reported your abuse to the Order and left you alone. We _chose_ this - chose _you_ because we believe it was - _is -_ worth it."

"Thank you." He replied simply with a weak smile, and Fleur pulled him into an embrace. Tonks leaned forward and planted a kiss on top of his head before pulling him back on his feet.

"Now enough moping about! You have your own house now, a home! You can do whatever you want now without worrying about Muggles or underage magic, go abuse that freedom for the weekend!" Tonks chirped happily with a playful swat on her lover's backside as if he were a horse.

"Well, since you put it that way..." Harry replied with a smirk before leaning forward and capturing her lips in a kiss. It soon grew more passionate as their lips parted and each allowed the other's tongue to probe and explore. Tonks' face was stretched with a wide and silly grin even after they broke apart. Fleur laughed at the expression.

"I think you broke her, Harry. I'm getting a little jealous."

His only reply was to bend down to kiss her with just as much ferocity as he did with Tonks, drawing a moan from the Veela. "Better?" Harry asked with a chuckle as he broke from the kiss.

"You have no idea." Fleur replied with a sigh of contentment. Tonks still had a silly grin on her face and seemed to be reliving the moment in her mind still, until the raven-haired wizard snapped his fingers in front her face.

"Huh?" Harry wondered for a moment if excessive passion could result in accidental magic and he'd confunded the Metamorphagus somehow. "Oh." She added intelligently.

"I suppose the Order will know I'm no longer at Privet Drive now." Harry sighed.

"How? I'm not going to tell them if you don't want me to."

"Mrs Figg keeps an eye on me for Dumbledore. I don't think the Dursleys can hide Vernon's crushed arm a secret for long. I expect she'd probably have heard the news by now."

Tonks let out a sigh. "That probably means I'll have to go answer to Molly and get yelled at. I suppose I have you to thank for that."

"A fair price to pay for getting to snog me any time you want, don't you think?" Harry sniped back with a grin.

"If all your kisses are that good, sure. I expect a more handsome _reward_ though." She winked as she left to report the new situation to the Order. "I'll see you later tonight and tell you how things went."

After she left the room, Harry left the bed to open his trunk and gather three pieces of parchment, along with his quill and ink. He supposed he owed it to Lupin, Ron and Hermione too inform personally that he was no longer at Privet Drive and assure them he was safe. He had a conversation he needed to have with Fleur as well. He quickly scribbled down the same letter to each of them.

_You probably heard by now that I'm no longer at Privet Drive. Long story short, my uncle nearly tried to kill me and I fought back. No, there's no chance I'm going back to give him another try and if anyone from the Order asks you to try and persuade tell them it's a choice between Voldemort killing me or my relatives, and neither option appeals to me. I'm perfectly safe where I am - reckon it's as safe as Gringotts, if not more. It's built to withstand a siege, really. I'll tell you more when I see you next._

_Harry_

_P.S.: You should probably warn the Order that trying to force their way to where I am is a very bad idea. The wards here are a nasty piece of work - all the more reason for me to stay._

He read the letter a few more times to make sure he hadn't divulged any information he didn't wish to give. He was certain that Hermione or Remus would have a good guess as to where he could possibly be hiding once they mulled over what he had revealed to them. No dobut the Order would comb familiar areas - the Leaky Cauldron and Diagon Alley. They'd soon be disappointed, and Tonks was on her way to save them the trouble. He would have gone along with her but knew that he was not in the mood to deal with any more drama from the adults.

"Take these to Ron, Hermione and Moony. Don't let anyone take the letters and peck them if they try." Harry instructed Hedwig as he attached the letters to her leg and opened the window for the owl to leave. The snowy owl gave a hoot of acknowledgement before taking off, leaving Fleur and Harry in the room alone.

The young Gryffindor figured that there was no way he could broach the subject delicately, and opted for his usual method of stumbling in headlong. "You don't mind that Tonks and I are..."

"Why should I? My Veela senses tell me what you feel is genuine and not the effect of your raging hormones, even if you do not know it. You do not love me any less, I can tell. The three of us have grown close and I can sense the strength of the bonds between us. Love does not envy, Harry." Fleur answered his unfinished question with conviction in her voice. She flashed her gentle smile and got up to embrace him to back her actions with words.

"Most witches wouldn't stand for this. Everyone will have a fit."

"I am not most witches, and our relationship concerns only us. I care not for what others think of us. Let them say what they want about what we have, people are always quick to condemn what they do not understand. Those who are true friends will understand and be happy for us."

"How is it that you're so wise? You were kind of an airhead when I first met you." Harry joked as he planted a kiss on her forehead to let her know how much he appreciated her words.

"To be honest, I learned from you." Fleur replied with a sheepish smile. "I heard all the things your schoolmates were saying about you that year. You paid no heed and competed to the best of your ability anyway, stayed true to your nature throughout. Madame Maxime and Karkaroff were willing to bend the rules so Krum and I could gain an edge, but you fought fair and stayed true to who you were - that much I could tell from looking at the way you handled each task - at fourteen!

"I was snobbish and played the part of an airhead because it was what everyone expected a Veela to be. The boys in my school could not talk to me without acting like idiots and the girls hated me for the attention my allure attracted. You know that I was a duelling champion in my school - it wasn't purely out of interest or talent. Jealousy inspires a great many nasty deeds from teenage girls. The way you handled yourself with your schoolmates inspired me to do the same. I only regret that I learned to do so in my final year in school. I might've made more friends. Still, better late than never."

"It's funny how people keep saying that about me. All I care about when these things happen is how to stay alive."

"Still, you never complained. It would have been easy to simply show up for each task and then wait for time to run out or simply yield, but you did not. No one would have blamed you - you were three years younger and facing trials even adult wizards haven't dealt with."

"I can't disappoint everyone's expectations of the brash, reckless courage of a Gryffindor." The young wizard answered with a chuckle. "It just never occured to me to give up."

"See? That is why you are a great wizard. You do not give up. You ask for help, make desperate attempts and throw everything you've got at your difficulties but it's never occured to you to simply throw in the towel."

"I sound a lot cooler than I actually am." He protested with a frown.

"Maybe, but the reality exceeds expectations where I'm concerned." She kissed him again with a smile. "Now, enough of all this serious talk. I'm hungry."

"You're not worried all this heavy British food will ruin your figure?" The raven-haired boy teased.

"With the workout Titus puts us through? Not one bit." She replied with a laugh.

8-8-8

Tonks met several wands pointed at her the moment she stepped into the Burrow. It was expected, after all. Harry Potter was missing, the Order member that was supposed to be guarding him had disappeared as well and all they had to go on was that an ambulance had arrived to take his uncle to the hospital to tend to a crushed arm.

"Oh, for goodness' sake." The Auror sighed as she scrunched up her face in concentration and morphed her nose to resemble a pig snout like she often did for laughs. The wands were lowred immediately. "This will probably go a lot faster if I simply tell you what happened and you ask me anything else I missed."

There were a few murmurs of protest but all the Order members nodded. "Ok, I'll start from the beginning then. A few weeks ago, I heard a commotion in the house and went to check it out. I saw his uncle advancing on Harry and it looked like he was about to hit him, so I intervened. It was then that I found out just how horrible Harry's life was while he lived there. I didn't feel right simply leaving him like that, especially since the Muggles were making a ruckus now that another one of the _freaks_ had entered their home. I set up anti-detection wards around his room so he could defend himself if needed to without the Ministry getting involved. I also made his room a little more comfortable.

"Anyway, I started accompanying Harry now that he knew I was there and since I figured the Muggles would probably leave him alone if they knew a qualified witch was there to keep them in line. Unfortunately today his uncle tried to attack me when I was careless and Harry retaliated with a Crushing Hex to the man's arm. There were several other attempts in between which we avoided, but today was the last straw and we decided he was safer elsewhere."

"So where is he now, Nymphadora?" Dumbledore asked worriedly.

"Do NOT use call me Nymphadora." Tonks growled. She said nothing further, clearly indicating that she would not answer any questions if people insisted on ignoring the one rule she had about her name.

"Where is he, Tonks?" Lupin interjected before tempers started to boil over.

"Living in more comfortable and habitable version of a Gringotts vault. The kind that doesn't use a key to open, mind you."

"Where is he?" Dumbledore pressed.

"I just told you. Somewhere safe." Her tone told everyone that she would reveal no more and she felt a few attempts at Legilimency pressing against her Occlumency barriers. She decided to let slip a few fantasies of her in Harry's bed with a very visible smirk on her face. Snape frowned and Dumbledore chuckled at her defense, but the hint of annoyance was there.

"Honestly, Tonks! Surely you know we all have his best interests at heart-" Molly Weasley had begun to object to the Metamorphagus' stubbornness, but her words had set off the younger witch.

"With all due respect, Molly, 'having his best interests at heart' means he has spent every summer with relatives who almost killed him today for bringing a 'freak whore' into their home, so you can understand if I think that is worth a pile of owl dung right now." Tonks replied coolly, but her gaze betrayed the barely suppressed anger.

"Voldemort is out looking for him, we can't protect him if we don't know where-" Arthur began.

"AND LEAVING HIM WITH MUGGLES WHO WOULDN'T BLINK WHEN THEY KILLED HIM IS SUPPOSED TO BE PROTECTION?" Tonks yelled at the top of her voice. "A fat load of help our protection is! If I was any further from the house he'd still be suffering hell there!"

"Surely you exaggerate, he was fine when I-" Dumbledore spoke again, but she did not let him continue.

"OF COURSE HE WAS FINE, HE DIDN'T WANT TO BLOODY WORRY ANYONE AFTER SIRIUS JUST DIED, DID HE?" Tonks yelled again. She was sure that the Weasley children and Hermione were probably trying to eavesdrop on the Extendable Ears and did not wish to hide the conversation from them. "I'd have thought that much was obvious if you even thought about the kind of wizard he is! Are you people daft?"

"Why didn't he tell us or wait for us to arrive before leaving?" It Kingsley who asked the question this time. Tonks cooled down just enough to answer the question without raising her voice, though her anger was still apparent.

"To be frank, I don't think he has much faith in the Order anymore. Not when it comes to dealing with Voldemort. He _flew_ to London and yet we arrived too late to stop him from doing something stupid. He's been brooding the whole summer and some of the things we've been doing make no sense to him and he's lost faith in our capabilities as a resistance against the Death Eaters."

"Just like him to think others beneath-" Snape began, but Tonks cut across him before he caused her to lose her temper once more.

"For example," She hissed through gritted teeth, warning the rest to avoid interrupting her. "We spend so much watching him, but aside from Ron, Ginny and Hermione who are safe because they're staying here, Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood are still left open and vulnerable. Voldemort used Sirius to goad Harry to the Department, and now we give him an opportunity to strike at friends who stood beside Harry last June. He doesn't need to go after Harry if he makes the boy suicidal by going after his friends!"

"Then there's the fact that all of you are trying to hide him and keep him safe but none of you will teach him the means to do it for himself. Everyone in this room has heard of all the things he's seen and accomplished so far, I think we all agree he is no longer a child. I believe no one will refute the point that Voldemort will stop at nothing to kill Harry. Funny thing is, none of us are willing to help him learn how to do it for himself. He may not be of age, but at the end of the day, he might not have a choice when the Death Eaters come knocking."

"You sound as if he's been..." Mrs Weasley began, but the thought was answered as soon as she was about to complete her sentence. "Tonks, you haven't been..."

"Teaching him magic? Of course I have! Has nothing I said in the last ten minutes made it to your ears?" Tonks replied defiantly. There was a little anxiety in there because she was worried that Molly might catch on to the feelings she had for Harry. She wasn't ready to discuss it with the Order. It was something that required Harry and Fleur to be present anyway.

8-8-8

"She can't be serious!" Hermione protested as the discussion in the kitchen was made clear to all of them through the Extendable Ears. In their hurry and concern over Harry's disappearance, no one had remembered to prevent the underaged wizards from eavesdropping.

"Well, she's kind of got a point." Ron admitted. "Especially if the Muggles are as bad as she says."

"I don't like the fact that he lives there over the summer, Ron. Still, we could have arranged for something to be done about them! Your best friend is now somewhere totally unknown everyone else and if Voldemort - _oh honestly stop flinching! - _finds out we'd be unable to go help him!"

"Tonks believes that whatever place he's in is as safe as Gringotts, Hermione! I don't think she'd joke about something like that!"

"Oh, really, will you two just shut up and listen to what they're saying?" Ginny snapped.

Any further eavesdropping was interrupted, however, by Hedwig's arrival. Ron and Hermione both grabbed their letters before Hedwig flapped off the railing they were leaning against and flew down to the kitchen where Remus was.

"See? He's fine!" Ron cheered as he finished reading the letter.

"We still don't know where he is! Besides, Harry's just the type to assure us he's perfectly safe even when he isn't!" Hermione huffed angrily, storming off into her room to pen a reply to Harry, intent on letting her best friend have a piece of her mind.

"She's mental." Ron and Ginny griped at the same time, before bursting out in laughter. Ginny sobered up quickly enough.

"You don't think she's right, do you?"

"Well, she has a point, but it doesn't sound like Harry's unsure of anything in his letter." Ron admitted. "We could just ask Tonks."

8-8-8

Back down in the kitchen, the Order's meeting was interrupted by Hedwig tapping on the kitchen window. Tonks flicked her wand and opened the window, admitting the owl. The letter addressed to Remus was dropped on his lap as she perched on his shoulder, watching the room carefully.

Lupin read the letter aloud and while a few of the Order seemed comforted a little knowing that the young man was perfectly safe, a few others continued to look concerned, namely Molly Weasley and Albus Dumbledore. "Remus, you have got to tell him that he needs to get over here quickly! I'll go get him myself if no one else is willing to do it!"

The glare she shot at Tonks made apparent her dislike for the Auror's actions. Taking a deep breath so she would not snap at Molly, the pink-haired witch decided to ignore her last comment and stare at Lupin. She knew that he shared Sirius' doubts about the wisdoms of Dumbledore's decisions regarding his best friend's son, but was not ready to doubt in the headmaster yet. After all, it was hardly grateful of him to treat the man who had given him a chance to attend school and a job later on with such suspicion.

"Harry has inherited his father's stubbornness. I dare say the only people who could convince him to come here are the people who agree with his perspective." Lupin answered wisely, making eye contact with Tonks for the briefest of moments. The message was clear - Sirius had clued him in on his will, if not then at the very least he knew Harry had full knowledge of its contents.

"Surely you can't be condoning what he's doing!"

"I can't say I would have done different, given the circumstances." Lupin replied diplomatically. "That isn't to say he couldn't have handled it better, but if he believes he is safe where he is, I won't object to it. Considering what he's been through in the past month, give or take a week, I don't think he'd carelessly put himself in danger."

Moody finally tapped his wooden leg to step in the discussion. "The boy's been through more than his fair share of trouble, I think he can handle himself. Arguing about whether we should be worried is pointless. If he isn't going to change his mind, then at the very least we make sure he _is _safe where he is. Obviously, Tonks here believes he's safe, but given that she's practically his accomplice, why don't we just send someone to ensure the place is as safe as they think it is?"

Molly Weasley might have protested at that point, but could not deny the truth of his words. The fact that his magical eye was focused on the table instead of constantly scanning every direction proved how serious the retired Auror was. "Oh, alright. Still, if Harry didn't tell Remus where he is, I don't expect he'll just let anyone else in!"

"What say you, Tonks? Will Harry be willing to let one or two of us check the place out?" Moody asked. The witch knew better than to say anything else besides answering his question.

"He might, depending on who it is. I can say for certain Severus and Dumbledore are out of the picture. You, Remus or the Weasley twins would be the best options. I don't think Ron and Hermione are even considerations on your part, so I won't bother."

"I'll owl him immediately then. I think it's best we ask him personally even if Tonks will relay our request." Lupin offered as he got up. Molly Weasley looked as if she was about to protest, but the werewolf held up his hand. "He's not a child any more, Molly, and we need to respect that he's made his decisions."

"Very well, then. Miss Tonks, if you will let us know as soon as possible and make arrangements with the involved parties." Dumbledore quipped. "If he is willing, I'd like to see him at the next Order meeting."

Tonks could tell that the old man wasn't trying to make a request, but was tactful enough not to make it a demand. There was a hint of hurt there as well, perhaps at the apparent lack of trust Harry was showing towards the Headmaster.

The meeting soon came to an end and the Order members filed out of the room, murmuring under their breaths about Harry's disappearance. She thought she caught a few disapproving comments about herself, but couldn't care less at that moment. She caught Remus on the way out. "We need to talk, preferably in private. Ron and Hermione, you two can come along too." She spoke her last sentence looking in the direction of the staircase where the Extendable Ears were dangling. There was a surprised squeak from Hermione but the two of them rushed down quickly, followed by Ginny. "Oh, what the hell, I don't think Harry will mind if you know too, Ginny."

She pulled the four of them out into the garden and quickly set up privacy wards. "Now, I don't know how much you all know, but I'll make this quick. Harry's hiding out at one of the Black properties. Sirius wanted him to be safe and taken care of in the event that he... Well, anyway, he's perfectly safe now."

"I should've known there was a reason why the goblins weren't insisting on Harry's presence!They're normally very strict about these things. A wizarding family like the Blacks has got to have a long list of properties! What about Bellatrix and Narcissa?" Hermione exclaimed as the clues began to make sense in her head.

"Sirius saw to it that only Harry has access to any of the Black homes by declaring him Lord Black. He's already made sure Kreacher can't tip them off, and they'd be sorry if they tried to break in. The wards there basically kill anyone who tries to enter bearing intentions to harm him. As for taking care of himself, just because I know you're going to ask, Harry has been the Dursleys' slave as soon as he could walk, so he can take care of himself. He has Dobby and Winky employed anyway - no, Hermione, he didn't enslave them and _they _asked him to take them in - so there's really no need to worry about him."

"Why did you say Dumbledore wouldn't be allowed to visit the place?" Hermione had asked the exact question Tonks had hoped to avoid. It was a long story and she didn't trust Dumbledore to try and pry the information out of Ron and Hermione through Legilimency if she answered. Lupin caught her train of thought and stepped in.

"I might be able to answer that question. Sirius and I had our... doubts about some of Dumbledore's decisions during the course of last year. Harry's parents never wished for him to be placed with the Dursleys, but with Sirius or me. A few other things nagged at us while we were discussing it in Grimmauld Place, but we agreed that as Marauders, we owed it to James and Lily to ensure Harry would be safe and happy. We didn't agree with what Dumbledore was doing with regards to Harry and despite his assurances that he knew what he was doing, we just couldn't be comfortable with it. Perhaps we were just overprotective of the only son of our best friends, but we did not put much faith in Dumbledore's plans, however little of it he divulged to us."

"Surely you can' be suggesting that..."

"No, we're not suggesting that Dumbledore's trying to get Harry killed. We're just saying that the man has a lot on his mind and is perhaps making critical mistakes because of it. Dumbledore is a brilliant wizard, Hermione, but he is _human_, despite impressions. You find comfort in the structure of authority, Hermione, but those of us who were there in the last war know just how fragile that structure is. Perhaps we are being selfish, but we do not wish to see Harry pay for Dumbledore's mistakes, much like how the three of you, along with Neville and Luna, paid for Harry's rashness in June. I know you went with him willingly and thus the cost might be bearable to you, but consider the fact that Harry has had little say in the fight so far despite the many attempts to get to him by the other side. I disagree with Molly in this regard - it is unwise of us to think Harry needs to be protected and shielded from it. The fact is that he will never be untouched by this war, not when he is at the very heart of it."

Tonks nodded. "You heard Moody just now. Maybe you don't know him well enough, but he basically complimented Harry on finally taking a step in the right direction. You've never heard the discussions last year between him and Dumbledore. The Headmaster is a noble man, and follows his morals to the letter, but Mad-Eye is the opposite. He wanted to take the fight to the Death Eaters and went so far as to say the Order needed to get off its arse. He only toned down after Dumbledore made it clear that Fudge would not hesitate to arrest any one of us if we ever got involved in altercations with the other side, and we don't have the means to bribe or talk our way out of trouble like they do. Now that everyone knows _he_ is back, Moody's started pushing for more proactive measures again. That is why some of us have been losing confidence in Dumbledore."

Hermione was pensive, and it was obvious that the young witch was struggling with the new information she had just heard. It was always difficult for someone to hear something that conflicted with their beliefs, especially if they spent years holding on to it. Dumbledore had always been there to guide the trio out of trouble or stepped in on their behalf, and now Tonks and Lupin were asking her to question the man's actions.

"Look, Hermione, I am grateful to Dumbledore for all he has done for me. Not many headmasters would have admitted a werewolf to Hogwarts or given a post as a professor, but I owe it to James and Lily - Sirius as well, after last month - to take care of Harry. We can appreciate the man Dumbledore is even if we have a difference of opinion with him." Lupin offered gently.

"Alright, so he's safe, but will we get to see him?" Ron asked. "He's not planning on hiding from all of us the whole summer, is he?"

"I don't think so. As far as I know he does intend to invite all of you over, Neville and Luna included. It's just that the place is bigger than Grimmauld Place and left unoccupied for even longer, and I don't think he wants to invite anyone over while it's still in shambles."

"His birthday is next week!" Hermione cried out suddenly. "We were planning to throw a party for him and everything! We can't do it if we don't know where he is!"

Tonks laughed at the thought. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I kidnap him here for the evening. Well, I better get back before Harry thinks the Death Eaters attacked me or something."

Turning to Remus, she continued. "How much do you know about what Sirius was planning?"

Lupin flashed a wolfish grin. "Well, I knew what he was going to do with the will, but I never expected the private reading for Harry. I was a little surprised when he left a letter for me earlier that morning that everything was taken care of and that the goblins had seen to it that Harry's absence was not an issue. He asked me to move Harry into one of the houses as soon as the Order ascertained the Death Eaters would be unable to infiltrate them, since he wasn't sure if the enchantments would hold."

"Well, that makes things easier. I'll just ask Harry to grant you access then, and if he's okay with Moody I'll let you know via our usual means." Tonks heaved a sigh of relief knowing that things would be a lot less complicated on her end, if Lupin knew about Sirius' plan.

"Alright then, the three of you, I need a word privately with Tonks." Lupin commented politely to the three teenagers. Their looks of curiosity were obvious, but they could tell that despite his gentle and courteous tone, their former Defense professor was not about to accept any protests on the matter. They nodded and left quietly, and the ragged wizard spoke up once they were out of earshot.

"I sense there is something more to this that you're not telling me. There was a little more emotion in your voice than should be normal for someone who was merely watching over him and teaching him."

"Alright, our actual relationship might be a little closer than that, but I don't want to justify to the Order, especially Molly. Besides, it's not something I'll discuss without Harry present."

Remus nodded and let the topic go. "I hope you know what you're doing, Tonks. I don't think Harry will be able to take more heartbreak after Sirius."

"Neither can I, Remus. I'd sooner die than hurt him." Tonks replied seriously.

"I'm sure you would, but I'm not sure the rest of the Order, Molly most of all, would see things from your point of view."

"I don't care, Remus. My relationship with Harry stays between the two of us. I'll renounce my ties to the Order if I have to. I love him and that's the end of that. I'm an adult and so is Harry in all but law. I have the right to choose my relationships and he's _earned_ his, as sad as that sounds."

"That is an argument you'll have to give to Molly. I just have one more question." Lupin answered with a smile running across his face. "Why Harry?"

"I don't have a reason, at least not one I can easily put in words. He's just... _Harry_. After all the things he's been through, including the things I've learned this summer, I think it's just incredible he's turned out the way he is. He cares nothing for his fame as the Boy Who Lived although he'd be set for life if he played that card. He's selfless to a point where it makes him look like he's off his rocker, given what he's been through and _nobody_ has given him a reason to act like he has. Most importantly, I can tell that his feelings are _true _and he's not lying about his affection for me even if he doesn't really know what love is yet. Do you know how often I find that in a guy, as a Metamorphagus? Well, maybe you can, since your own condition isn't exactly something most witches are willing to deal with."

The werewolf simply nodded. "I understand. He's a very unusual wizard. I just wanted to know that this wasn't just a 'heat of the moment' thing."

"It isn't." Tonks answered honestly. "Though of course, it helps that he as a very large..."

"TONKS!" Lupin protested loudly as he brought his hands up to cover his ears, although it was too late as the anticipation of her next words had already put the image in his mind.

"... _Heart._" Tonks finished with a laugh. "Honestly, Remus, I thought you had a better opinion of me." She put on a tone of mock hurt as if his response was not what she was aiming for.

The man simply laughed and dispelled the privacy ward before walking away. "I'll have to remember that one."

8-8-8

Harry and Fleur were relaxing on one of the couches when Tonks sauntered in, looking really tired. They adjusted themselves, Harry offering an arm for Tonks as she dropped ungracefully onto the couch and wrapped his arm around her and laid her head on his shoulder. "How did things go?" He asked softly.

"Pretty much as we expected. Dumbledore looked a bit hurt when I told him you didn't want to let him know where you were. Hermione, Ron and Ginny were worried sick but Remus and I explained things to him. I think Sirius clued him in on the will. Molly was worried sick about you and I shouted her down after explaining what the Dursleys did. I left out the part about Fleur though. Anyway, Mad-Eye stepped in and told the Order that it didn't matter where you were if we could be certain you were absolutely safe behind the wards here. Dumbledore agreed to have one or two people from the Order check this place out if you were willing, although he seemed a bit hurt that you didn't trust him enough to let him know. He wants to see you as soon as possible, so we'll have to talk to the Unspeakables about that. It might a get little suspicious if you're only available on weekdays. I offered Lupin and Moody as candidates, since they're the most level-headed and respected in the Order."

"Yes to Remus, and Moody only if he makes an oath not to tell Dumbledore or we obliviate his memory of the exact location of this place." Harry answered.

"Are you serious? _Obliviate_ Mad-Eye Moody? You don't have to worry about Riddle if you tried that."

"Maybe, but I'll warn him before he even steps foot in here. He'll have a choice in the matter."

"Fair enough, I don't think he'll like it though. Nobody messes with his head, especially after what Crouch Junior did to him."

"I couldn't care less. I'm taking a leaf out of his book on this one, he ought to be proud." Harry answered with adamance in his voice.

"Oh alright. You wouldn't have anything leftover to eat, would you? I'm starving."

Dobby popped in at that moment and left a plate of steak and potatoes on Tonks' lap, neatly sliced into pieces for ease of consumption. She barely had time to thank the elf before he disappeared once more. "He's clearing a second room for Fleur since she's staying here permanently. We figured that with the frequency of Death Eater attacks there it's safer if she stayed here. You can stay here too, if you like. The place is big enough."

"I'd love to." Tonks answered gleefully as she turned her face up to kiss Harry quickly. "I pretty much told the Order I'd be guarding you all the time anyway."

"Perfect. You two can have the bed in the master bedroom for the night then. I'll take the couch." Harry offered with the air of a gentleman. Fleur simply hugged him more tightly and frowned.

"You are doing no such thing."

"But the other bedrooms won't be-"

"Oh shush! You're our boyfriend now, it's not as if you haven't slept with either of us in your bed before." Tonks interrupted him. "Nothing has to happen if you don't want it to, and I can't believe _I _am saying this to a _guy_."

"Well, fine." Harry relented with a sigh. He couldn't truly muster up the strength to protest with the warm bodies of two incredibly beautiful witches on either side of him. "I suppose I can't resist two hot and welcoming witches offering me a spot in their bed."

8-8-8

The next morning, Harry woke up and wondered why he had slept so comfortably and peacefully through the night. For a moment, he panicked as he realised he was no longer in his bedroom, but as he turned to see the face of Tonks sleeping with a silly grin and a rather considerable amount of drool dribbling from between her lips, he remembered that he no longer lived in Privet Drive.

The feeling of waking up in his own home was very different. It felt similar to his mornings at Hogwarts, but there was a strange sense of empowerment in knowing this mansion was _his_. It wasn't a dormitory in school nor the pitiful bedroom in the Dursleys' home and it was such an alien sensation but it felt so... _right_.

There was a movement to his right and he turned to see Fleur rousing from her sleep groggily, the soft morning light hitting her face at just the right angles, making her look like an angel, despite how cheesy the notion seemed. He had somehow fallen asleep with each arm under the two of them. Fleur had been using his shoulder as his pillow but Tonks had rolled off in the middle of the night and left his arm flattened against the bed.

The Veela opened her eyes and saw him observing her. She gave him a sleepy smile before shuffling up to kiss him on the cheeks. "Good morning, love." She whispered in his ear. She sat up after a moment and freed his arm. Her hair fell into place perfectly as she did so and Harry wondered if he was the only person whose hair was perpetually messy.

"Tonks is quite a sight in the morning." Fleur commented with a quiet laugh once she saw the state of the Metamorphagus. Harry chuckled silently and gave Tonks a peck on the lips in an attempt to wake her.

"Time to wake up, Tonksie." He cooed in her ear only to draw a groan from her.

"Don't wanna." She murmured lazily, turning her head face down into the pillow, but then jerked back when she felt the wetness of her own drool on the pillow. She flushed a bright red and the roots of her hair were changing their colour to match her face when she got up abruptly and rushed to the bathroom to wash up. Harry and Fleur simply laughed at the sight of Tonks acting like a teenage girl despite being the oldest among them.

"I'm going to have to obliviate you two later!" She snarled grumpily from the bathroom.

"Oh relax, I happen to find it rather adorable." The young Gryffindor answered honestly with every bit of affection he could muster.

"You are rather endearing in your own way, Tonks." Fleur added on with a good-natured laugh.

"Nice try, but I still won't forget this!"

"How is it our fault you drool in your sleep?" Harry asked in mock exasperation but could not keep the mirth out of his voice.

"You're too lovable that I can't help it!" Tonks shot back playfully. "So it's your fault."

"I can live with that." He offered with an overdone sigh of resignation. She had, however, walked out of the bathroom smiling.

"Ready for Moody and Moony?" Tonks asked as she grabbed a change of clothes from the hastily packed trunk she had brought to the Sanctuary last night. Harry entered the bathroom next so she had some privacy while she changed. Fleur made use of the opportunity as well, though she felt the need to tease Harry about it.

"You've shared a bed with us but still feel shy about us changing in the same room?"

"Your clothes were still _on _when we went to bed, if I recall." Harry replied; the fluster apparent in his voice.

"Not for much longer if I have anything to say about it!" Tonks chirped happily as she left the room, but not before banging into the dresser on her way out. It was fortunate for the wizard in the bathroom, for his hand had jerked rather violently while his toothbrush was still in his mouth, as naughty images filled his head at Tonks' words. Fleur had heard the grunt of pain, however and laughed.

"You do realise that if the three of us are going to be together, whatever she was hinting at would involve you as well?" Harry asked teasingly in an attempt to direct attention away from his aching cheek.

Fleur only licked her lips, making the sound audible enough for Harry to hear through the bathroom door. "That sounds absolutely delicious." She smiled. "Do you want me to be here, when they arrive?"

The bathroom door opened and the young wizard stepped out as she asked that question. He took her hand and intertwined their fingers, a gentle smile on his lips. "I wouldn't have it any other way... No matter who _they _may be."

Harry Potter was no poet, but his words made her heart flutter all the same. There wasn't a witch on earth who could refrain from getting deliriously happy when they heard such words from the love of their lives. The Veela replied the best way she knew how, pushing Harry up against the door and snogging him senseless. It was now his turn to be the one with a goofy grin. She chuckled and playfully pushed him out of the way.

"Now budge over, I don't think you want me to be dressed like this when they arrive."

"Oh, I don't know... It might be fun to see what they'll tell the Order if they do see you like this."

"Too bad then, you're the only one who gets to see this."

8-8-8

Remus had to admit that he had not expected Harry to have chosen this place as a refuge after fleeing the Dursleys. Well, not if his ward had simply been reacting to a bad situation, anyway. It was apparent that plans had been made to leave Privet Drive a long time ago. Sirius had always been the least sensible when it came to how dangerous their pranks were, a fact that had changed little even after Azkaban. It seemed, however, that when it came to his godson, Sirius Black had been thorough. It was obvious from the state of the building outside that despite the old enchantments keeping the building from falling into decay, it had been forgotten by the Blacks for generations. Padfoot must have checked with the goblins and made sure each property would be inaccessible to the Death Eaters.

He spared a glance at Alastor Moody and could tell that even the paranoid ex-Auror was impressed. The old wizard did not stop to take in the sights, however, and proceeded towards the manor without breaking his pace. Tonks and Lupin heard the words even if they had not been uttered. _Are you waiting for them to take a shot at you with a Killing Curse? Keep moving!_

The front door opened and Harry stepped out, holding hands with a blonde witch. She seemed familiar, as if he had seen her face somewhere. "Fleur Delacour? The Beauxbatons champion?" Moody growled. "What's she doing here?"

"Long story." Tonks offered cheerfully, obviously enjoying the fact that she knew things the other two did not. "The short version is that she's been helping Harry as well." Lupin sensed that there was a lot more to it than that, but decided not to press the matter. It was obvious enough from the way Harry was holding the witch's hand that he was not going to hide the nature of their relationship together.

Moody had his wand drawn and pointed at the raven-haired wizard once they had gotten close. "What was the first thing I ever taught you?"

"I'm assuming you're excluding whatever lessons happened in the fourth year when you were locked in your trunk? That would be to not keep my wand in my back pocket in case I cursed my own buttocks off."

Moody lowered his wand. "How did you know it was us?"

"I didn't, but if you were impostors the wards would've killed you by now or revealed your true identities."

The retired Auror waved his wand in the air and seemed pensive. "That's some pretty nasty defenses you've got around this place. I can't say Dumbledore will be happy about some of them, but I can't imagine anything getting through the enchantments even if the bastards find themselves a dragon." Moody commented. "Now, if you don't mind, I wouldn't say no to a strong cup of coffee if you have it."

The atmosphere eased considerably after that, the group heading indoors for coffee and a breakfast. Moody left soon to report to Dumbledore, disapparating directly from the place once Harry had lifted the restriction for the two wizards. Remus stayed behind to catch up with his former student.

"So, I've heard Tonks' story about what brought you here, but I can't help but noticed the lack of several details and differences between that account and the reality of your sitation." Remus chuckled. Harry simply raised an eyebrow at his reaction. "I might have been the most sensible of the Marauders, but I am still a Marauder. I appreciate a good prank when I see it, even if you're worrying a lot of people who care about you."

"If I were a petty person, I'd consider it payback for last summer." The young man laughed. "I wanted to tell you, once I had everything ready and all, but my relatives forced my hand earlier than I intended. After the commotion that caused I couldn't have kept things quiet for much longer and so we adapted. I could tell you the whole story, if you like."

Remus nodded and Harry started recounting the past weeks of his summer, including his training with the Unspeakables, though he glossed over the sensitive details. He knew the werewolf would pick up on it, but from the gentle smile on the man's face, it was clear that he understood the need for secrecy regarding the mysterious group of wizards. When he finished, Remus only looked astounded for a moment, but tilted his head back and laughed heartily.

"Old Padfoot would have loved to hear the chaos his little stunt has caused and all the additional fun that has happened to you on top of it." Looking at the trio before him, however, a sense of duty filled him since he had first read James and Lily's wills with Sirius. With his best friends now departed, it fell to him to be a father figure to Harry even if he had a 'furry little problem' to take care of. "I have to ask, though, in my capacity as your new guardian, are you..."

"Happy? As close as I can be with a Dark Lord still eager to end my life. I'm finding it when and where I can even if I have a war to fight. Certain of what I'm doing? Not entirely, especially after what happened in June. I've learned and will continue to learn all the things I need to so I can put an end to this once and for all. It helps that I have two beautiful witches at my side helping me along."

Remus nodded with a gentle smile. "I think your parents and Sirius would be proud to hear you say that. It's all we've ever wanted for you, you know. Even during the first war, your father James was restless while in hiding not because he was itching for some action, but he believed, as did all of us save Lily, that the only way you would be safe was to end Voldemort once and for all. Even after their deaths, after Dumbledore placed you with the Dursleys and hid you from our world, I'd hoped that you would have a chance at a happy and normal childhood, even if you would grow to be ignorant of our world. When I found out for myself just how horrible the Dursleys had been... I wished I could've done more, Harry."

"You were liaising with the werewolf packs, I understand. I never asked for any of this, but whining about how unfair it is that the burden is being laid on me won't change anything, will it? If I want to be happy and spend the rest of my life in normality, I'll have bite the bullet, as the Muggles say, and make sure I survive this war."

He sounded just like his father, even when things were at their darkest in the last war. Both of them had been living proof that adult realism and child-like optimism could exist within the same soul.

Lupin got up and hugged Harry. "I'm sure you're tired of hearing it from the adults, but you and your father are so alike. Now, I offer my congratulations on behalf of Padfoot and Prongs, on your bagging two very desirable witches. Your mother might have a few words to say, but I expect Molly will be delivering them on her behalf once she hears of this."

The colour drained from the younger wizard's face. "You're not going to tell her, are you?"

Lupin laughed. "I don't have a death wish and even if I promised your parents to protect you if anything ever happened to them, I'm sure they'll forgive me if I leave this entirely in _your _hands."

"Thanks for nothing, then." Harry grumbled.

"Well, I should be reporting in soon too. If there's nothing else, I'll be making a move."

The raven-haired wizard spoke up, his tone becoming more serious than it was before. "Wait! I wanted to ask if you would consider moving here."

Remus turned around and looked him in the eye. The emotions in the older wizard's eyes was unmistakeable. "Are you sure? My condition might not make it safe..."

"There is more than enough space to house you. The walls and doors in this place are thick enough that a few spells should keep you from breaking out even with your increased strength when you transform. There's always the dungeons but I rather hope I don't have to keep you in there during the full moon if we can avoid it."

"You've thought this through."

"You're family, Remus. If you can live a little closer or have place where you can avoid hurting anyone with people to watch you, why risk it on your own?"

The werewolf's eyes were glistening with tears and Remus could not keep from hugging the young man. "Thank you, Harry."

8-8-8

The rest of the Order had been informed by Moody and Lupin that the place was as secure as Harry claimed. It did little to relief Mrs Weasley's concern, or Dumbledore's frustration, but everyone else seemed to relax at the assurance. The Weasley twins were more interested in guessing where Harry was, although their guesses were based more on vivid imagination than logic. Within the next half an hour they had proceeded to describe the scenarios, ranging from a small flat furnished within a Gringotts vault where Harry enjoyed goblin cooking to a Muggle beach full of hot girls that would leave You-Know-Who begging Harry for tips on wooing girls, and once the Dark Lord had gotten laid the war would be over.

Molly Weasley then proceeded to chastise the twins and anyone who laughed about the severity of the situation and how Harry could not possibly be faring well on his own. She had dropped the arguments about his safety once everyone had pointed out that the usually paranoid Mad-Eye Moody had been _impressed_ by the security of the place and had gone so far as to say he'd sooner attempt to break into Gringotts than try attack the hideout the Gryffindor was holed up in.

"From what Tonks has been saying, mom, Harry's been the one taking care of the muggles all this time. I think he's taking caree of himself just fine. Besides, Lupin already told us he had two house elves looking after him."

"Surely you don't think a couple of house elves could possibly substitute for company!" Molly protested. Anyone looking at Hermione at that moment would have seen the flash of annoyance cross her face only to be suppressed by her mirrored concern for her best friend.

"Harry has Tonks keeping him company... Though I wonder if she's actually _keeping him company_?" Fred continued with the humour and barely avoided the frying pan his mother was attempting to smack him with.

"Fred Weasley! If I hear one more lewd comment like that I will make sure you won't see another witch for the next ten years!"

The twins took that as their cue to continue their line of discussion in the absence of their mother, although those still gathered in the kitchen of the Burrow could hear them muttering under their breath about how humour was the first casualty of war.

Lupin had left and Tonks hadn't even returned with them, though Ron, Hermione and Ginny wondered if it was worth another argument between the Metamorphagus and the Weasley matron just to get a chance to interrogate her further. The three of them had left the room so they could talk without the adults overhearing them.

"You don't think Tonks could really be..." Hermione began. "She was rather emotional at the last meeting."

"Isn't she six years older than him, though?" Ron asked in his usual display of emotional insensitivity.

"They're a lot closer in age than you and Madam Rosmerta!" Ginny teased. Hermione laughed and Ron's face was a bright shade of red as he endured yet another bout of teasing over his crush on the older witch.

"At any rate, even if they are together, so what? Harry deserves it after all he's been through." Ron insisted while fighting the embarassment he was feeling. "I always thought that it'd be with someone from school, I'll admit, but look at how things went with Cho!"

"That's the whole point!" Hermione argued. "Sirius was her cousin, and his godfather! They might just be together because they're in grief! If they've been... _physical_, it'll only make things worse if things don't work out, especially if he knocks her up!"

The two continued to bicker until Ginny could no longer stand it and silenced both of them. "Alright, you kids, pipe down! Hermione, I think Ron's right - both of them deserve some happiness after what's happened. Ron, Hermione has a point about the two of them getting hurt if they're not careful. Still, Tonks is a grown witch and knows how to handle herself despite her clumsiness. I don't think she'll let anything happen between her and Harry if she thinks it won't end well. Instead of fighting about it, why don't you just ask either of them the next time you see them?"

For once, Ron had nothing to argue and Hermione was at a loss for words. Ginny felt a slight sense of triumph at that, but had to admit that she was equally worried about the state of Harry's relationship with Tonks. She would be lying if she said she did not have any feelings left for the Boy Who Lived. She had dated other guys and stopped going mute with a crimson blush on her cheeks whenever she was in the same room as him, but she was still infatuated with him somewhere inside her heart.

Then again, she could admit it was mere infatuation and she had not had a real chance to see if it could be anything more. If Harry found happiness with Tonks, then she would give them her blessing and find her own elsewhere.

8-8-8

The rest of the weekend was much less exciting, much to the relief of the trio. Harry spent another night nestled between two witches in bed, thinking that perhaps it had been worth all the trouble just for this.

He rose much earlier than usual on Monday morning, eager to start his exercise regime like the healers had recommended. He carefully extricated himself from the tangle of limbs that was Fleur and Tonks, not wanting to wake his two lovers up. It was a good opportunity for him to explore the grounds as well. He realised that his trainers were perhaps not the best choice for running, but he had no alternatives. Making a mental note to purchase a proper and new pair of shoes now that he had the time, Harry set off to explore the grounds of the mansion at a slow jog.

It wasn't until he had finished a single lap around the perimeter of the inner wards that he realised the distance he had covered was probably quite impressive for someone whose full extent of exercise was running from Dudley and his gang. Perhaps the potions were more effective than he realised. His muscles were already burning and he was very much out of breath, but he had never felt so alive.

"You git, don't just leave without a sound like that! You nearly gave us a heart attack when we woke up and you were missing." Tonks called out irritably. She walked out into the cool morning air in only her panties and the large shirt she had worn to bed the night before. She shivered a little and all thoughts of apologising left him for a moment as he was distracted by how adorable she looked like that.

Harry decided that from now on, he would only call a girl beautiful if they could leave their beds every morning like that and still look as sexy as Tonks did. Fleur joined her soon after upon hearing the Metamorphagus' rant. Fleur was entirely different from Tonks. The French witch somehow had a way of waking up without putting a single hair out of place. Was it a form of Veela magic that she would always look her best or did Fleur charm her hair to stay that way? The answer didn't matter to him one bit, as his tiredness left him almost entirely save for the lactic acid still in his legs at the sight of the two goddesses before him.

"You two are beautiful." He breathed.

"Nice try, but tell us where you went the next time!" Tonks called out. She was still trying to put on a mask of annoyance, but the sincerity of his compliment was not lost on her and there was a small smile tugging on her lips all the same.

The trio made a little more small talk as they headed into the dining area for breakfast, the witches deciding not to change immediately since Harry appreciated their current state so much.

They entered the Department to find not Titus, but Hawke waiting for them. There was something mischievious in the way he approached and greeted them. "Titus reckons you're all ready to move on from combat training to the next phase. Spellwork can only get you so far against an enemy with superior numbers. The best way to tackle them is to make sure they never know you're there."

"Stealth. Great." Tonks grumbled. Harry and Fleur chuckled at her ire for the next phase of training, since her clumsiness had always been a great hindrance in her work.

Hawke chuckled softly as well. "I've seen you in your duels with Titus, Tonks. You can be graceful and surefooted when you want to. It's all a matter of carrying it over to non-combat situations. All Metamorphagi are clumsy to a certain degree, since your body form can be varied but not your hand-eye coordination."

She scoffed and rolled her eyes, having heard plenty of complaints about her clumsiness. Molly was the most vocal about it whenever she offered to help in the kitchen or at the dinner table. She murmured a few unintelligible words that sounded a lot like "can't help it" to Harry.

Hawke led them through a door into a wide chamber. With a wave of his hand, walls rose from the floor in several sections. Harry knew what was happening before Hawke announced it. He had dealt with it in his fourth year, after all.

"A maze?" He asked, raising an eyebrow quizzically. Other than pathfinding, there wasn't much else that a maze could help train in the area of stealth, was there?

"Yes and no. It's a maze now, but the walls can be configured to form buildings and room layouts. We use it whenever we run through drills for an operation. Today, however, I'll be assessing how good you are at infiltration and the like. There are obstacles such as barriers or security wizards patrolling. The people inside are all illusions so don't feel bad if you need to kill them or whatnot, but the point is to not be detected in the first place. There is more than one path through the maze, but it won't be easy."

Tonks was looking unhappier as they listened to what was required of them. Fleur's expression was halfway between bemusement at Tonks' apprehension and anticipation of what they would face in the maze. Harry was already looking pensive and preparing himself for the task.

The trio headed into the maze, and took no more than three steps before Fleur stopped them. She waved her wand in a series of complicated movements and a faded blue light formed a barrier in front of them. It was a simple Caterwauling Charm placed over the path, and was easily dispelled. There was not ease in the tension even as they progressed. They knew that this would be the only easy part in the maze, a warm up for whatever lay ahead.

The rest of the maze was much of the same - Fleur took care of any wards that were in their way while Harry and Tonks worked together to remove any guards or obstacles in their way while avoiding raising an alarm.

It was two hours later when they finally made their way out of the maze, having taken several detours when they deemed a path too tricky to get past. Hawke was clapped softly when he saw them exiting. "That wasn't a half-bad attempt. I honestly didn't expect you to make it through the first time. However, I don't think it's practical to keep casting Silencing or Levitating Charms every time Tonks knocks something over."

There was an irritated murmur from the witch, but she said nothing. She had long known that her clumsiness was a big hindrance. Even as an Auror her superiors had avoided giving her any jobs that required her to tail a suspect or arrest a culprit without raising an alarm unless her abilities as a Metamorphagus would come in useful. She had compensated for this weakness by ensuring her spellwork was second to none in the Auror office and that she'd be their best bet in a fight. While she wasn't on the level of legends like Moody and was one of the newest recruits, nobody in the DMLE would doubt that she was one of the best they'd seen.

Hawke waved Nutrix over and gestured at Tonks. "She's all yours."

With that, the Auror was removed from her two partners as she begun her training to fix her clumsiness. The Unspeakables never took any risks with their operatives and wanted to make sure that Tonks' weakness would not endanger anyone else.

"Alright, I usually do this part myself, but since Miss Delacour here already has the required background, I'll have her teach you, Potter. You can't keep relying on a single person when it comes to wards. It'll just make your lives harder if she gets incapacitated or is unavailable to help you. I'm not asking for a perfect mastery, mind. Most wizard dwellings don't have very many difficult wards to break. It'll be best if you know how to deal with the basics and be able to detect them before you trigger an alarm."

8-8-8

"You're too worried about the result, Harry." Fleur corrected him gently when he set off the ward once more. The last hour had been a repetition of Fleur setting up wards and him failing to take them down without being detected. The sound of the Caterwauling Charm had gotten too irritating after the first ten tries and his partner had switched her enchantments to glow red instead should he fail to succeed in breaking the ward.

The Gryffindor had a whole newfound respect for Fleur's abilities as a witch after he realised how elegant and sophiscated setting and breaking wards were. It was not as simple as uttering a spell and countering a ward's effects - not when most wards were meant to set off traps or alarm the caster whenever someone intruded upon them or attempted to break through the wards' lines. Fleur had shown him how detect wards and assess their properties, but that had been the easiest part. There was no risk of detection unless you did it in front of your enemy, since it was highly redundant to trigger the wards whenever someone checked for them around a wizard's home. It was common courtesy not to do so since it was not uncommon for wizards to accidentally bump into wards, unaware of other magical dwellings in the area and ensure they were not trespassing.

He was convinced that if he ever learned how to remove wards safely and without setting them off, he'd be qualified to be a brain surgeon in the Muggle world. His train of thought was not far off, as the slightest mistake had distastrous results. Fleur had conjured a small dollhouse and set up several wards of increasing difficulty to remove, and each had a different effect upon the dollhouse or retaliated against Harry. Though she assured him that he would not be hit by anything worst than a Stinging Hex, there was always the possibility that getting hit by a combination of the wards' retaliation measures would have rather painful consequences. It was why he could not fully concentrate on removing the key element of the wards, worried that the slightest miscalculation on his part would send him straight to the medical bay.

"Clear your mind and do not be afraid of failing!" She assured him with a gentle smile. "If you can find the ward's foundation, strike it and dispel it immediately. Don't hesitate and second-guess yourself."

Harry took a deep breath and called on his Occlumency training in order to calm his mind and emotions. He fought down the frustration at his lack of progress and eyed the dollhouse with keen determination. Waving his wand carefully over it once more, he took a shot at the first ward. It was a simple ward to repel Muggles and warn the inhabitants if another wizard approached the residence. Gripping his wand tightly in his hand, he waved it in the same movements Fleur had shown him and worked on dispelling it once more. Once he had located the wards' focal point, he channeled his magic there and the ward fell.

His smile at the success was matched only by Fleur's. It was the first time that he had seen her smile so widely and with such pride and affection for him. It was unrestrained and seemed to contradict her usually composed demeanour. It was infectious and he found her joy seeping into his own heart, letting him totally forget about the world and the war he was trapped in for a long, almost eternal moment. Taking a mental photograph of her expression, he decided that if she would smile so brightly for each ward he broke successfully, he had a lot of incentive to do well.

In a separate part of the room, however, the last member of the trio was having a much tougher time. Nutrix was making Tonks run through exercises that would help her improve her sense of balance and her muscles were tiring from the amount of effort it took her to refrain from fumbling. Fortunately for her, her teacher was strict but patient and not at all like Titus. Her temper was taking a turn for the worse and she did not think she'd be able to tolerate the ribbing.

By the time they were allowed to take a break for lunch, Harry was tired from the strain of working on Fleur's wards while Tonks' entire body was stiff from her own training. Both had made significant progress but knew that the day had just begun. Nutrix had had the decency to give Tonks a potion to get rid of the aches in her muscles, though she knew it was more due to the fact that she needed to be in proper condition for the next half of the day than for her own well-being. The three of them hence ate lunch quietly as the warm food filled their bellies and replenished their energy.

The next half of the day was more of the same, though Hawke had taken over Harry's training and showed him the other methods of breaking wards. "Some times finesse and doing things quietly won't do, or you don't have the luxury of time to break through delicate wards. The simplest method is to simply throw curses until the ward collapses, but if the caster knows what he's doing, that'll be another waste of time. Destroying the wards is a lot like tearing down your neighbour's fence - no matter how quietly you do it, they can tell it's no longer there the moment the look at it. Other spells will come in handy if you don't want to leave any traces behind."

He had set up another ward in front of Harry and pointing straight at it, sent a jet of blue light straight at the ward. The effect was instantaneous and visible so there was no need for explanation. The spell hit the ward and seemed to eat through it, creating a temporary hole in the ward. The ward soon mended itself, however, and when Hawke threw a Reductor at it, showed no signs of damage.

"The first spell I used was designed to drain magic from objects. Powerful magical objects can be extremely dangerous when they malfunction or are damaged, so wizards working with them invented this spell to ensure that the magic in an object can be absorbed and dissipated before the object explodes or kills someone - either during or after the creation process. Of course, it can't weaken some Dark curses but such spells are mostly placed on artifacts rather than used as barriers." Hawke explained. He demonstrated it a second time, running towards the ward as he did so. The hole in the ward was a lot larger than before and gave the Unspeakable enough time to run through it before the crack was mended.

"The trick is to know how much power to put in the spell. Using too much will leave a gap large enough to warn your opponent exactly where along the ward line you're trying to make your escape. Too little, and the ward is mended before you clear it. Overpowering it is fine if you're already under fire, but you still have to know how to gauge the amount of power to place in the spell, depending on circumstances. It's not easy to do so under pressure, especially when your life is at stake, so we'll keep at this until you've got the hang of it."

Fleur had never seen the spell before, since Curse Breakers at Gringotts were more interested in removing enchantments and curses permanently. It didn't make sense to leave wards intact when other wizards or Muggles might accidentally set them off if they ever happened upon the site. Tonks was still undergoing her own special training though she joined them for the few minutes it took for Hawke to explan and teach them the spell. Once she left to continue her 'therapy' with Nutrix, the other two got down to practising the spell.

Fleur had mastered it quickly, her previous training helping her greatly in gauging the amount of power to put into the spell. Harry watched her out of the corner of his eye and wondered as she practised whether her usually graceful and elegant movements carried over into the way she used magic. In contrast, he was constantly putting too much power into his own casting and left oversized holes in the ward. He realised that he had done the same thing too in his duels with Titus.

When Fleur undid his bindings on the first night that started him on this journey, she had already told him that he had more magical strength than most. It was why he could keep up with the torrent of curses thrown at him during their combat training and meet them with equally powerful curses. Fleur had lacked his power but used skill to make up for her lack of power by casting her spells in quick succession and exploiting openings left by her opponent. Tonks was somewhere in between them though her style was more defensive in nature, as Titus noted. He had been rather derisive of the Aurors' training, which focused on suppressing the target and keeping both parties alive. The Aurors were supposed to catch Dark wizards, after all, not publicly execute them. The Unspeakables were different in that regard. The only way to deal with a Dark wizard was to snuff them out as soon as possible. Harry remembered Titus' words: "Keeping them alive for Azkaban or a Kiss from the Dementors? Killing them is a mercy they don't deserve, and a chance lost for them to take out one of our own."

Evening came and just as Harry had successfully gotten the right amount of power into his spell, an Unspeakable burst into the room and gestured at Hawke. "They're going after Amelia Bones."

"I'll go get Titus and meet you outside!" Nutrix yelled as she headed to find the last member of her team. Hawke turned to the three trainees in front of him.

"Here's your chance to see if any of Titus' training stuck, Potter."

8-8-8

_**A/N: **__Well that's Chapter 6! I know it's taken a long time but I just had so many problems writing this chapter. I'm not really good at fleshing out character interactions, since I'm not really a social person myself (I think I might have some mild form of Asperger's). Hopefully the chapter still turned out okay._

_Thanks once again to everyone who has left me reviews and provided criticism. I do read through every review and try to keep your comments in mind as I continue working on this fanfic. It's part of the reason why I take so long to write each chapter. I keep reworking parts I'm not happy with or correct any flaws in my writing readers have pointed out. It's also partly due to the fact that I'm starting to realise I don't really like how Rowling set up magic in the Potterverse. It sounds more like fencing with wands than magic at times, though it's probably due to the fact that kids can relate to it more and I'm too used to anime or fantasy style magic._

_I'm afraid I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update, since I am taking driving lessons at the moment. I'm trying to get my driver's license before I enlist in March (mandatory National Service... One of those times I wished I wasn't a nerd with no muscles) and that'll take a bit of time out of my schedule. I can promise, however, that I will keep updating this as and when I can._

_Keep the reviews coming and stay awesome!_


	7. Baptism of Fire

**Chapter 7: Baptism of Fire**

"Teams Two and Six, approach them from the northern street! Teams One, Three, Four converge from the west and pick off any stragglers. Team Seven, with me!" Hawke barked out hurriedly as the Unspeakables assembled into their teams and apparated to the scene of the battle.

Seven was the number assigned to Harry's team as they followed Hawke out to meet the rest of the Unspeakable teams. It had been decided that it was best to keep a low profile and keep the fact that Harry Potter was training with the most skilled wizards in Britain a secret. It was as much for his own safety as it was for the rest of the Unspeakables. There was no telling if Voldemort would be bold enough to attack the Department directly in an attempt to get to him.

There was already a small detail of Aurors fending off the Death Eaters when they arrived on the scene, but it was apparent even to Harry's untrained eyes that they weren't going to last much longer. The Bones residence was a rather sturdy cottage with stone walls and strong wards, but the curse marks on the wall was evidence enough of the fierce onslaught that had taken place.

Fortunately the arrival of the Unspeakables tipped the scales in their favour. Still, he couldn't help but be impressed by a single witch who was throwing spells with cold fury at any target that came too close. He recognised her as Amelia Bones from the photograph Hawke had shown him. A small part of him was filled with awe at the courage of the woman and knew there was little doubt why she was a forerunner for the post of Minister of Magic.

The rest of him, however, sprang into action. They had apparated to a point closest to the fighting, placing them between Madam Bones and the Death Eaters once they drew their attention. Harry, Fleur and Tonks were whelps as far as the Unspeakables were concerned and would not have been chosen for this task, but Hawke and Titus wanted to see first-hand if their time spent in training was paying off.

"Bombarda!" Harry and the two witches with him yelled out as they aimed at spots in the middle of the Death Eater formation. Three explosions engulfed the Dark wizards and would have left those closest to them fatally wounded, but it wasn't enough reason for them to stop throwing spells. Curses pierced the cloud of dust their explosions had kicked up, giving the Death Eaters no room to recover.

"Get Madam Bones, we'll cover you!" Titus growled as he stepped forward with his two partners and resumed the battle.

The trio complied immediately and moved towards their objective. There was a defiant stare in Amelia Bone's eyes that told Harry had she not seen him curse the Death Eaters, he'd be duelling her as well. She stepped out from behind the pile of demolished wall that had been giving her cover and stepped towards Harry. Her wand wasn't raised at him but could easily raise it to defend herself.

"Madam Bones, if you'd come with us, we'll get you somewhere safe." Harry managed to say while a few Death Eaters were using any openings they found to send stray curses right at him. Fleur and Tonks were covering him as best they could, but it was apparent that the enemy was determined to assassinate the prospective Minister tonight.

"My niece and bodyguards..." She managed weakly as another curse shattered the door frame beside her head. Harry swore loudly and sent several curses back in the direction of the offending caster.

"We'll see to them, but the bastards want your life most of all, madam. We need you out of here, _now_. Your men are trained for this." Harry urged.

"My niece isn't!" Amelia yelled in frustration. "Susan! Come here now, quickly!"

_Susan? Susan _Bones? Harry wondered. It made sense when he thought about it, but felt stupid for not realising it sooner. He glanced over his shoulder into the house to see the familiar face of the Hufflepuff running out from the living room.

"Going somewhere, Amelia?" A cold voice sneered. It chilled Harry's blood as he felt a presence pounding against his Occlumency barriers. There was only one person that voice could belong to. A black mist floated in above the barrier and formed into the body of Lord Voldemort as he stared at the woman standing in front of her home.

"Get the two of them out of here." Harry ordered Fleur and Tonks as he stepped forward to challenge his archenemy. Questioning looks and worried expressions filled the eyes of his two lovers, but he stared them down. Their silent argument was concluded as quickly as it began as the two of them moved to cover the Bones.

"Out of the way, fool. I will forgive your insolence if you step aside and-"

Harry did not let Tom Riddle finish his threat. Curses deadly enough to kill on contact were sent flying at Voldemort with such ferocity and speed that anyone watching closely could see the slightest falter in the Dark Lord's expression.

He knew the curses would be easily deflected by Lord Voldemort. After all, Riddle had the wizarding world trembling in fear of his name for a reason. His assessment was proven right after a shield was conjured to absorb every last one of his spells as equally deadly curses were sent back his way, almost at the same time from Voldemort's wand. A yell of anger rose from his opponent's throat as Tom Riddle unleashed his anger into every spell. The nerve of the fool to interrupt him!

The power of his opponent would have had him wondering how to react, how to make it out alive before. This was no longer true for Harry Potter. As he dodged and blocked every curse, he could clearly see every opening left by the lack of a coordinated aim from the Dark Lord. The Gryffindor was no longer struggling to survive the fight, he was thinking of how to _win_.

Every space in Riddle's attacks was filled with Harry's own spells. Around them, Unspeakables and Death Eaters stopped their own duels to watch the two wizards battling for an advantage. He noted wryly that despite all their training, Hawke and his team were the only ones with enough sense to make use of the distraction to take down the remaining targets.

A near miss made him shift all of his attention back on the man before him. _That's right, powerful and evil as he is... He is only a man._ It was this thought that strengthened him as he continued to trade spells with Voldemort. The cackling laugh of Bellatrix punctuated the brief moments of silence between the sound of colliding spells and conjured shields. She was one of the few Death Eaters who weren't shocked into inaction.

It was becoming clear to Tom Riddle that his adversary was no amateur and was quite skilled. The fool would have made a fine addition to his forces, but chose to oppose him instead. It was pity that a wizard of such calibre would go to waste for opposing his power. Still, the hubris of Lord Voldemort was not so great that he was blind to the fact that his opponent had held his own all this time. The battle had to be decided soon.

Did it, though? He did not come to challenge some nameless fool wearing a mask. He came here to assassinate Amelia Bones. A smirk crossed his features as he realised the fastest way to end the duel and come out the victor.

"Fuck!" Harry cried as Voldemort blocked and evaded his last barrage only to fly off in the direction of Tonks and Fleur. There was no point in him being a decoy if the bastard didn't take the bait. He couldn't catch up to Riddle without a broom, and he did not wish to test his skill against Voldemort while racing on his Firebolt even if it was on his person. He needed to get to Tonks and Fleur before-

The image of their faces, the taste of their lips and the smell of their hair filled his mind as he spun on the spot and apparated straight to them. When he materialised in front of them, however, he cried out in pain. There was a reason why the Ministry needed wizards to get a license to apparate. It was to prevent brash fools like Harry Potter from attempt apparition with practice and getting splinched. A chunk of his left arm was missing and his body was thrown off balance by the pain. His foot crashed painfully against a tree trunk and he felt his ankle twist.

"He's coming!" Harry yelled through gritted teeth as his partners came to check on him. The Death Eaters had been through enough to throw up Anti-travel Jinxes far enough to give them room to chase down any stragglers. They were close to the edge but still too far to make it before Tom Riddle caught up to them.

Tonks was trying to help him but he shoved her arm away. "GET THOSE TWO OUT OF HERE, NOW!"

The cold laugh of his enemy rang out through the trees. "Skilled enough to face me alone in a duel, yet you fail to apparate such a short distance properly? I overestimated you."

"Don't be a fool, _Tom_. I'm giving you a handicap." Harry growled defiantly as he forced himself to stand, twisted ankle be damned.

"You dare-"

"Yes, I _dare_. You think yourself a god when you are but a man." He had to be crazy to taunt the Dark Lord like this. Tom Riddle roared in anger and continued his onslaught of curses. Harry could only defend himself this time, his injuries too severe to allow him to move properly. Even so, he returned fire and gave his opponent no space to breathe. It was the only way to buy enough time for the others to escape.

"Crucio!" Tonks' voice yelled from his left. She had doubled back and tried to flank her target. It would have worked had she not tried it against a wizard of Voldemort's skill.

"Avada Kedavra!" Voldemort yelled as he swung his wand around to point at Tonks.

Just as Tonks had anticipated Harry's use of the Killing Curse when Vernon Dursley attacked her two days ago, this time he foresaw Riddle's use of the same spell and dove straight at Tonks. The distance was too great for him to cover, but somehow strength had filled his legs and cleared the distance with no problems. Unfortunately it did not prevent the Killing Curse from hitting Harry Potter in the back.

8-8-8

The air was thick with magic. Fleur turned around just as she felt it, a chill running down her spine. There was only a few things that would have caused such a large outburst of magic. She steeled herself and produced the escape portkey that would bring the Bones to safety. Tonks was with Harry and wouldn't let him die so easily. She had to trust in the two of them.

There was a jerk behind her navel as the portkey transported them into Hogsmeade, inside the Shrieking Shack. The Bones were obviously surprised by the choice of destination, but Amelia picked up on the reason quickly enough. "Hogwarts, the one place Voldemort wouldn't dare try to attack, am I right?"

Fleur nodded and led the way up to the castle after ensuring that the Bones were wrapped in traveling cloaks and their faces obscured. It wouldn't do for someone to spot them on the way up to the castle. Albus Dumbledore was already standing there, ready to greet his guests.

"Madam Bones! To what do I owe the pleasure of this late night visit?"

"You-Know-Who at my doorstep, that's what! I need refuge for the time being, and Hogwarts is the safest place there is."

The old man's smile faded quickly. "Ah, I feared as much. Come then, I expect Miss Bones would prefer her own bed in the Hufflepuff dormitory?"

There was some small talk, but Fleur paid no attention. She simply turned and prepared to leave. She wanted to make sure Harry was safe.

"Thank you, miss, whoever you are." Amelia Bones shouted after her. She gave the slightest bow to acknowledge the thanks before disapparating away.

8-8-8

Why was he waking up in King's Cross station? Harry could not shake off the feeling that something was amiss the moment he opened his eyes. Had he died? It was the only explanation for why he was in a very different place. He remembered the duel with Voldemort and jumping in front of the Killing Curse meant for Tonks. Then he opened his eyes and he was in a train station.

"Harry." It was a voice filled with so much affection it felt alien to him. Yet it sounded so familiar as well. He turned around and saw faces he'd only seen in photographs older wizards left to him.

"Mom?" He could not believe it. Lily Potter was standing before him. He walked forward and embraced her, feeling warmth despite the fact that she was dead.

"My son..." Lily Potter's voice choked as she held him. It felt strange for him to desire something so strongly when he had never known it before. It was tempting to stay like this for eternity.

"I'm... dead, aren't I?" He asked softly as he broke the embrace.

"Yes... and no." A second voice answered. Behind his mother was a man that had his messy hair and very familiar features. Harry knew then why everyone said he looked just like his father. It was almost as if he were looking into a mirror. "You took a Killing Curse, but it was not you who died. You are somewhere in between life and death... and free to choose either."

"What..."

"Think back on what happened before you were here." His mother asked him.

"I jumped in front of Voldemort's Killing Curse to save Tonks."

"Yes, and in doing so called upon old magic that has saved you since the night he came for you."

"You mean... when you died to protect me?"

His father spoke up this time. "Yes... When Voldemort killed you that night he left a bit of him inside of you. It is why you're a Parselmouth and why you can see inside his head. It's why you get a headache every time you're near him. A piece of him resides within you. When he killed you moments ago, he killed that bit of him. Had the curse from one of his Death Eaters, you'd be dead. Well, technically you are."

"Why am I here then?" Harry asked, curious. If it was Voldemort's soul that died, why was he here?

"You met Death as an equal, Harry. When you knew Tonks would die you made a choice, however unconsciously, that you would trade your life for hers. You did not fear death and did not hesitate to meet it."

"Wait, doesn't that mean that she..."

"Yes, the same magic that saved you from him that night now flows in her veins, thanks to you. Tonks is now protected from Voldemort just like you are." Lily Potter said with a smile.

"So what happens now?"

"It's entirely up to you." James Potter replied a hollow smile on his face. After all, he finally had a chance to talk to his son, and would like nothing more than to have more time with his own flesh and blood. Yet there was a war that needed Harry Potter in the world of the living. "You can return to the world, or... _move on_."

"Voldemort's not dead though. I still have to defeat him."

"No he isn't." Lily Potter confirmed. "That man has gone to great lengths to ensure his own immortality. He has abandoned his humanity altogether. As to whether you _have to _defeat him, it's a question of choice, isn't it?"

"What do you mean? The prophecy-"

"The prophecy says one of you will die at the hands of the other, which just happened, didn't it?" James Potter answered with a laugh. "You have to end this not because of some stupid prophecy, son. You'd never be able to live with yourself, figuratively speaking, if you didn't return and put an end to it, would you?"

"I guess not." Harry answered truthfully. His father was right - prophecy or not, there were too many things he held dear to him that Tom Riddle would destroy. It was reason enough to fight.

"Then you must return. Don't feel bad about us, Harry. We died protecting our son. No parent could ask for a better death. We're proud of you, and we'll always be watching." James Potter stepped forward and embraced his son, now a man, for the first and last time.

"Always," Lily Potter echoed as she placed a kiss on his forehead.

8-8-8

Harry immediately wished he could have stayed in that realm a little longer. His ankle was still twisted and his left arm was still splinched. Something wet was hitting his face, however. Was that sobbing he heard? He opened his eyes a little wider and saw only black cloth.

Tonks was holding him to her, sobbing over his supposedly dead body. He was facing her breasts, delightfully supple and firm. He could stay like this forever- _Not while she's crying, you twat!_ He berated himself as he moved and caused the witch holding him to jump back with a yelp of surprise.

She didn't get very far as Harry held her close with his right arm while his left arm remained limp at his side. It seemed to protest its inability to hold the witch by causing Harry more pain. She continued to sob into his chest until her emotions settled down. "How..."

"No idea... It seems I am now the Boy Who Lived _Again_." He managed a weak joke but groaned in pain. He had to tend to his wounds now or he'd pass out from the pain.

"Oops, forgot about that." Tonks produced her wand hurriedly and quickly reversed the damage to his arm and ankle. "There, as good as new."

His wounds were still sore, but he wasn't bleeding or in excruciating pain anymore.

"Where's Riddle?" Harry asked, now that his sensibilities were returning.

"He escaped. I guess it was a bit much to hope that he'd die tonight." Hawke replied dryly as he stepped into the clearing. It was apparent that the Unspeakable had been hopeful the war might have ended tonight.

"He stumbled after you were hit with the curse, and disapparated. The Death Eaters followed shortly after." Tonks explained.

"Bloody load of good tonight did us!" Titus yelled in frustration as he joined them. "Bastards had emergency portkeys on their wrists. Every single one we dropped escaped and we've only got corpses to interrogate!"

The following half an hour was a blur as they cleared the streets and ensured that there were no Muggle witnesses. The corpses were identified and searched before being transported back to headquarters. Harry moved slowly, still reeling from all the things he witnessed tonight.

"Can't tell right from left, I take it?" Hawke called out to him. His trainer was sitting on a piece of stone masonry, resting.

"Yeah, this isn't how it usually goes when I face Voldemort." Harry replied. "Other people normally take care of cleaning up the mess I leave behind."

Hawke chuckled at the joke. "The first time you haven't been fumbling about as well, then?"

The young wizard could only nod. For the first time, Harry Potter felt like he survived due to his skill as much as his luck. He remembered telling the DA last year that he had been more lucky than skilled. He would be amending that statement once school started.

"Go home and get some rest, Potter. We'll sort everything else out tomorrow."

8-8-8

Fleur ran and embraced Harry the moment he appeared in the Sanctuary with Tonks. Tackled would have been a more appropriate term. "I feared the worse when I felt that wave of magic!" She managed to say through her sobs.

Harry embraced her tightly. "Not even death can stop me from returning to you, Fleur."

Another pair of arms wrapped around him from behind, shortly followed by Tonks' cheek on his back. "I'm still trying to convince myself I was dreaming."

"You can see, hear and touch me now. I'm still alive." He replied softly.

"Yeah, we can smell you too. You need a bath." Tonks chuckled softly against his back.

"Hey, the two of you smell just as bad as I do and I'm not complaining." Harry shot back. His retort earned him a smack on the back from Tonks and a light jab in the shoulder from Fleur.

"Prat! Don't ever tell a girl she smells bad, even if it's the truth."

"I was just saying we _all _need a bath." He wiggled his eyebrows in an attempt to be seductive. It only caused the two witches to laugh at the implicit suggestion. It was a much better alternative to the two of them sobbing over his near-death experience.

Ten minutes later Harry was in the tub with Fleur and Tonks, trying his best not to look at either of them. They had called his bluff and he was now caught in the tub with two naked witches on either side of him, washing him gently and eliciting a very visible response from his groin. It did not escape Tonks' notice as she kept washing his legs and brushing against his erection, giggling every time she did.

Fleur upped the ante when she washed the soap off of Harry's neck and planted kisses where the soap was washed off. "Forget Tom, you two are going to give me a heart attack." He managed to rasp out through his ragged breaths.

The Veela planted a kiss on his lips, her tongue brushing gently against his own. "Dying in the arms of two beautiful witches? There are worse deaths than this." She managed smirk as she broke the kiss. Harry groaned loudly, both at the loss of contact with Fleur's lips and the feeling of Tonks' hand wrapping around his member.

Tonks moved to replace Fleur's lips with her own, as the French witch moved down Harry's neck and her hand joined Tonks'. Harry decided to return the favour as well, moving his hands to caress the witches beside him. His left hand cupped one of Fleur's supple breasts while the other slipped between Tonks' thighs and a finger brushed against her clit, drawing a gasp from her.

He broke the kiss with Tonks and moved to Fleur, kissing her softly on the lips before making his way down her body to her breasts, planting a ring of kisses around each one before planting his mouth on a nipple. His tongue flicked against it, drawing a moan from the Veela. His ministrations caused the two witches to tighten their grip on his member, which in turn served to encourage him further. His free hand soon moved down to stroke Fleur's womanhood as well.

He moved his lips on to lave attention on Tonks in a similar fashion, and the sounds of their pleasure filled the bathroom as the three of them reached their climax together. The witches' grips on his erection loosened as he softened, and his fingers slipped out from between their legs, the evidence of what they'd just done washed away immediately by the bath water. Fleur and Tonks were still panting into his neck as he put an arm around each one.

They left the tub and towelled each other off slowly, enjoying the tender care and affection in the action. Harry shared a chaste kiss with each of them before all three of them moved to the bed and let the tiredness take the three of them into the next day.

8-8-8

"So, how does someone not die when they're killed?" Titus asked.

"Yes, I think we are all quite curious to know what exactly happened." Hawke continued. They had all gathered in his office the first thing in the morning, eager to piece together all the things that had happened last night.

Harry recounted everything from the moment he shielded Tonks from the Killing Curse. Hawke was quiet and nodded at intervals, as if all the information he was being presented were simply clues to a puzzle, and not a strange tale of unheard magic. Titus and Nutrix were less composed but still retained their calm demeanour. They were Unspeakables, after all, and probably knew more about magic from the research being carried out within the department than most wizards dared to dream of.

"You saw a glimpse of the afterlife? No, perhaps that's the wrong term for it... but there is no question that it could not have been a hallucination." Hawke was thinking aloud more than he was trying to explain the situation to Harry. "Perhaps it's time for you to learn the truth."

Harry stiffened. He had heard similar words from Dumbledore before, when the prophecy was revealed to him. He didn't find it strange at all that the Unspeakables would know things he didn't. He was simply curious as to what could be so grim as to cause a visible change in Hawke's partners.

"What you described, what your parents said Voldemort destroyed, is what is known as a Horcrux. A piece of a wizard's soul held within an object. While a piece of a wizard's soul remains earthbound, he cannot die. You've come across one of them yourself."

"Tom Riddle's diary was a Horcrux!" Harry gasped in realisation. It seemed so obvious now. The Riddle that had emerged from the diary had been more than a piece of Voldemort's memory held within its pages. It was aware and took life from Ginny Weasley to hold on to its own. There was no way a simply diary would do such a thing if it were just another one of Riddle's old school things. It seemed more likely that the diary would have been destroyed, to remove all connections between the boy named Tom Riddle and the Dark Lord Voldemort.

"Yes, the diary. If your experience tonight is any indicator, when Riddle hit you with the Killing Curse, he also destroyed the piece of his soul within you. How you came to be one of his Horcruxes... that is another matter entirely. I suspect it was the night at Godric's Hollow, when he first tried to kill you, that he unwittingly made you one. It also means that defeating him has become that much tougher."

"What do you mean? We know how he's keeping himself alive; we know how to defeat him!" Harry asked excitedly.

"Yes, it would seem that way. Then let me ask you again, Harry Potter. How does a wizard split his soul and hide it in an object?" Hawke's voice was grim and serious.

"Murder," Tonks answered for him. "Taking a life before it is meant to be ended is the greatest violation against nature a wizard can commit."

"Yes." Hawke confirmed simply. "There are other ways, of course, all of them equally vile. The main thing to note is that simply taking a life won't do. You have to do so without remorse, without feeling guilty. If you had killed Voldemort tonight, your soul would remain whole and unblemished, because you were simply defending yourself against an adversary. Mercy killings are another example, when the victim is in so much pain or is beyond rescue and all you have done was to grant them a dignified death. The point is, Harry, a man like Tom Riddle has taken countless lives, feeling nothing for his victims and enjoying the power he holds over them."

"So his soul has been split several times, is that it?" Harry asked. The Unspeakables nodded their heads.

"My guess is that his soul has been split so many times it has been rendered unstable, like a piece of glass with too many cracks on its surface. If a piece of it could latch onto you without his knowledge, how many Horcruxes has he already made?" The air was grim and cold, as if all hope had gone from it. It was as if Dementors had entered the room during the conversation.

Titus spoke up next. "We don't know how many of them he has created, even if we do know he has made more than one."

"We do know one of them has been destroyed, the diary." Harry spoke up. "Tonight, he destroyed another unwittingly. Our job is difficult, but not impossible."

Hawke gave a laugh. "Hopeful even when faced with such news. Though I can say that we do know where another one lies. At least, I hope its whereabouts are unchanged."

Tonks, Fleur and Harry leaned forward, eager to hear news of another Horcrux. Titus and Nutrix tensed instead. "Hawke, are you sure?"

"Potter has earned the right to know." Hawke replied simply and removed his mask. It was the first time Harry saw the man's face and immediately he noted a strong resemblance-

"It can't be… Y-you're Regulus Black!" Tonks exclaimed. "You're supposed to be dead!"

"I am, as far as anyone else is concerned. I'm surprised you recognised me."

"I should, your room at Grimmauld Place is the one I've been using whenever I stayed over."

He chuckled. "Ah yes, I forget you're part of the Order. Well, perhaps I should start from the beginning."

All eyes were on him now, a dead man, a relation of Sirius, who had come back to life.

"I believe my brother Sirius would have told you that I was a Death Eater. I was young and foolish then, eager to please my mother and her pure-blood bigotry. Seven years in Slytherin made the choice easier to accept of course. I was eager to prove my worth, eager to make a name for the Blacks. My sisters were wed to other families, and I was to bring 'honour' to the house of Black with my service to the Dark Lord.

"The more quickly I rose through the ranks, however, the more I could not deny conscience. I was no killer, and definitely not a rapist. I would strike a man down in a fair duel, but not while my comrades held wands to his family. The last straw was when a few Muggle women were brought before us, and their purpose for being there became clear. There was a young girl with them, barely in her teens. She was brought to satisfy the more... _queer_ apetites of my fellow Death Eaters. I gave in to the voice in my heart then. I could no longer be a part of this.

"Still, I had accepted the Dark Mark, and my fate was tied with my service to Lord Voldemort. The only way out once you took the Mark was to die. I would have thought it a fair price to atone for my sins, but I could not do it. Perhaps I had more in common in Sirius than I liked to admit, for I could not take the coward's way out when I was in a position to fight from within their ranks.

"So I started finding a way to undo Voldemort. I continued to play the part of the perfect Death Eater, though I never engaged in some of their darker activities. I refused to touch filthy Muggle women, I lied to them, and never again was I called to be present at their revelries. One night, I found the answer I had been searching for.

"He asked for a house elf. He had never required one and it was a strange request. I volunteered Kreacher because I saw an opportunity. It did not go to waste. Kreacher almost didn't return, but I called his name and he answered the summons. Voldemort was a fool to underestimate the magic of house elves. I learned of what happened in a cave far away and found a locket. I had seen the engraving on it enough times to know that it was the emblem of Salazar Slytherin. It was one of his Horcruxes. I retrieved it, after drinking the same potion that almost drove Kreacher mad. I could not make him do it a second time. I ordered him to take the locket and leave, to destroy it once he made it back. I was too weak and a great thirst claimed me, no doubt the effects of the potion I drank.

"I reached the edge of the water and tried to drink from it. Riddle had Inferi swimming the lake, and they dragged me beneath the surface. Kreacher returned just in time to grab the tip of my finger and apparated me outside. It was there the Aurors caught up with me. I was too weak to resist, so I obliviated Kreacher to let him think I had died, ordering him back to Grimmauld Place to try and destroy the Horcrux."

"Then the Unspeakables came and recruited you, once they learned what you had." Harry finished Hawke's story for him. Despite being younger than Sirius, the expression on Regulus' face made him look like a man who had seen as much of life as Dumbledore.

"It was a mission entrusted only to the three of us, who were all new recruits at the time." He continued. "William Rookwood was a spy for Riddle, and the Unspeakables did not know who they could trust. A Death Eater who had just signed his own death sentence by stealing one of Voldemort's links to life was a godsend." Regulus gave a wry laugh.

"So how many Horcruxes have you found?"

"The locket is the only one. We've had many leads but all of them have ended in disappointment. Riddle covers his traces well. We suspect he has several more hidden away, but we don't know exactly what he'd use as Horcruxes. Those that we know of - the diary and the locket - were both items with strong personal ties to Tom Riddle. He has gone to great lengths to bury his past. Even with our resources, we don't even know where Tom Riddle began his transition into Lord Voldemort."

"So all the training I've been doing is all for naught, then? If we can't kill him-"

The Unspeakables laughed. Titus spoke up this time. "You fought Voldemort to a draw tonight. You tell us if your training was for naught. He cannot die, no, but recall how he was before he regained his body and power."

Harry Potter remembered the night at the graveyard, and the words Tom Riddle had spoken to his Death Eaters. _I was less than spirit... less than the meanest ghost..._

"There is another reason why you must absolutely beat him the next time you clash." Nutrix interrupted. "You survived the Killing Curse he threw at you tonight because what he really killed was the bit of his soul residing within you. Do not count on surviving a second time if he does manage to kill you again. Though we can't know for sure, not when the magic connecting you and Tom has reached depths unexplored for ages."

Titus continued. "So, assume that the next time you meet him will be the last."

8-8-8

The rest of the week passed by quickly, as the now official Team Seven threw themselves into their training with renewed vigour. Tonks didn't even grumble about the extra lessons she was getting from Nutrix to overcome her lack of psychomotor skills. Harry had learned how to apparate so he would not splinch himself again.

It wasn't until Tuesday of the next week when Team Seven assembled before Hawke once more. "There isn't much else we can teach you three, as far as skills are concerned. We worked the three of you harder than any other recruit we've ever gotten and I can honestly say you've all taken it better than expected. The only thing left is to give you three some field experience, so expect to tag along with a few other teams for the rest of the summer. I say you three deserve the rest of the week off after burning your last weekend here, so I won't call you back unless it's an emergency."

The three departed the facility soon after Hawke had confirmed the completion of their training. Fleur left Tonks and Harry to return home first while she dropped by Diagon Alley. They had found it strange that she insisted on going alone, since they had all agreed not to venture into that particular stretch of London any more after the Death Eaters attacks. Still, Fleur seemed to have some personal business to take care of, and she didn't want to involve the other two. They grudgingly obliged, only to find that Fleur returned shortly after they had apparated into the Sanctuary.

Despite the fact that Hawke and Titus had made them run through everything they've learned in the past few weeks that day, his two lovers seemed pretty energetic that night. They had dragged Harry out on a walk to get a proper view of the grounds, and explored the surrounding area on broomsticks, invisible to everyone else. They landed in a dark alley of a nearby town and shrunk their brooms before Tonks dragged the two of them into a pub.

"Tonks, I'm not old enough-" Whatever the young Gryffindor wanted to say was cut short as Tonks slapped his Unspeakable mask on him and adjusted the illusion over it to show the face of a much older man. Sighing in resignation, Harry wrapped his arms around Fleur and Tonks, changing his posture to match that of someone much older than he was. He had just officially completed his training as an Unspeakable and now he was using it to sneak into a pub.

There was soft jazz music playing in the background as the trio settled down into a quiet booth, and Tonks called drinks for the three of them. Fleur had a rather amused expression on her face as she watched Harry fidget about in his seat. "Relax, they're all Muggles and none of them will see through you unless you keep twitching." She assured him.

"I'm twitching because every other guy is looking our way, I'm not sure if I should thank you or Tonks for that. I can almost smell the jealousy coming off of them. I might be skilled in a duel but don't count on me in a brawl."

She chuckled lightly. "I forgot Muggles get affected by my allure as well. I suppose Tonks' pink hair does draw quite a bit of attention here."

"Crap, I forgot. I normally change my hair colour when I need to walk among Muggles. Sorry, Harry."

"Don't apologise, if one of them tries to fight me over one of you I'm going to duck behind you." He replied wryly.

The looks he was getting remained just that, however, as the other men in the pub remained in their seats and seemed to be content with the occasional glance in their direction. Though the raven-haired boy was certain the kisses the two women were planting on his neck and lips every time a fellow patron was watching were not helping his situation.

A game of football soon aired over the television in the pub, which drew attention away from the three of them. Harry explained the game to Fleur while they watched the game. While the Dursleys had never been fans of the sport, they watched enough games every now and then that Harry could explain all the rules of the game to Fleur. The rest of their time at the pub was spent watching the match and as soon as it ended, the trio left the pub.

It was well past eleven by the time they flew back to the Sanctuary. Harry was smiling from ear to ear, since he hadn't enjoyed himself quite this much since the summer began. For once, the Dursleys were not around to spoil the mood or threaten his safety.

"Well, he's yours for the rest of the night." Tonks said aloud to Fleur before hopping up the steps and turning towards one of the guest rooms. Harry turned to the Veela, curious.

"Come with me." She instructed gently as she took him by the hand and led him up towards their bedroom. There were candles floating in the air, filling the room with the scent of vanilla. "Close your eyes." She whispered softly in his ear.

He obeyed silently, his curiosity growing. He tried to use his hearing instead to guess what Fleur was up to, but failed miserably. Their stealth training had obviously come in useful for her as she gave no hint of what she was doing, save for the sound of a drawer opening.

"Open your eyes." The instruction came just as the midnight bell chimed from a clock. Harry opened his eyes to find Fleur dressed in a light blue negligee, holding a box in her hands. "Happy birthday, Harry," she wished him with a smile as the box was passed into his hands and she planted a light kiss on his lips.

He had forgotten that it was his birthday, with the intense training they had been having for the past week. Apparently Tonks and Fleur had not forgotten, and had made plans. The outing was just an excuse to keep him up till midnight. He gently undid the ribbon that held the box shut, and opened it.

The box held a wand, sleek and slender. "It's made from Hawthorn, twenty-one centimetres long and with a strand of Veela hair as the core – from me."

He picked up the wand in his hand and immediately felt a sense of connection with it, as if it were a part of his arm he lost and had just reattached. "This feels much better than my original wand."

"It should, this wand was made specifically for you." Fleur answered. "It is a physical representation of love, and made for a wizard who fights for it. Do you remember what Ollivander said when he examined my wand during the Triwizard Tournament? He said that Veela hair was temperamental. He was only half-correct, you see. Veela hair has to be willingly given, and a wand made from it will only serve those whom its owner loves. It is a wand made out of love, for love. I had Ollivander make it the other day, when the joke shop was attacked."

"Thank you, Fleur. It's beautiful." Harry whispered as he planted a kiss on her forehead. The stirring of emotions for the French witch seemed to resonate with the wand. He gave a short wave and immediately extinguished all the candles in the room, bathing the both of them in darkness.

"Wow, all I meant to do was put _one _out." Harry exclaimed in surprise as he flicked his wand once more and relit the candles. Fleur was smiling widely.

"The wand works better than I had hoped, then."

"This means a lot to me, Fleur." He gave her another quick kiss on the lips. "Why did Tonks have to give us privacy for this, though?"

The Veela blushed immediately. "Ah… Well, there's a second present, you see."

"What is it?" He could scarcely believe there was a second gift after Fleur's first one.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the lips. "Me." She replied softly, blushing even more. His new wand clattered to the floor as Harry gaped in surprise. He had little experience with girls, but he was not thick enough to misunderstand what she meant.

"A-are you sure? Not that I don't want to, but just because it's my birthday doesn't mean-"

She silenced him with a kiss. "I've wanted this for some time, and I don't think I could wait any longer. I'm certain, and I'm not drunk or doing this just because it's your birthday. I want to be your first, Harry, just as you are mine."

She brought her lips to his once more, this time the kiss was needy and demanding. There was no more teasing, only raw emotion. The couple retreated to the bed, where they broke the kiss only so they could position themselves properly on the bed. Harry's cloak had already fallen to the floor along the way, and Fleur was undoing his belt. His own hands were caressing her soft skin, as he slipped the straps of her negligee off her shoulders. His lips moved down her neck, kissing the length of her collarbone before moving down to her now bare breasts. He lifted his head just enough for her to slip his shirt off, before he returned to kissing down the length of her body.

Every centimetre of skin that was bared as he slipped the negligee down her body was covered in kisses. Heat was building in her belly as she kicked off the piece of cloth and lifted her hips so Harry could slip her knickers off. His kisses trailed along the length of one of her milky white thighs before coming back up the other. When his lips reached the apex between her legs, he stopped and looked up at her. The uncertainty in his gaze was met with a nod of her head as she parted her legs to allow him to place his leg between them.

He gave a tentative flick of his tongue along her slit, eliciting a moan from the witch. He proceeded slowly, listening for gasps and moans that told him when he was doing something right. He did not wish to hurt her, not during their first time together. Soon, Fleur's legs were wrapped around his head and her moans grew louder as he found a rhythm. Her juices flowed freely and it wasn't long before she screamed out her climax. He lapped up her juices as her legs tightened their grip on him. He kissed his way back up to her lips while she recovered, their tongues softly brushing against each other while Fleur recovered from her orgasm, tasting herself on his tongue.

She pushed him off of her gently and returned the favour, kissing down his body slowly and exploring his new toned physique his exercise regime had given him. She pulled off his boxers, freeing the evidence of his arousal from its confines and stroked it gently. She kissed the tip before licking along the underside and sealing her lips around him. His fingers combed through her hair as her head bobbed up and down gently, the French witch just as uncertain as he was. The feeling of her tongue on his member had Harry quickly approaching his climax. As overwhelming as the pleasure was, Harry retained enough of his senses to realise that Fleur might not enjoy the prospect of him spilling into her mouth. "Fleur, I'm about to…" He groaned out as his release came.

She moaned around the tip of his cock and flicked her tongue against it, sucking hard as he came. His semen hit her tongue as she continued her ministrations on his softening cock, bringing it back to hardness while she swallowed his ejaculate.

When he was fully erect once more, she slid up until their bodies were flush against each other and kissed him, the taste of each other mingling on their tongues. Harry rolled both of them over so that he was now on top of her and looked into her eyes with a silent question. Her eyes were filled with unbridled passion as she nodded and wrapped her legs around his hips, one of her hands moving to position him at her entrance.

He entered her slowly, which took all of his willpower to do. She gasped as his tip entered her, grimacing a little. He wanted to stop but she shook her head and gave him a reassuring smile. He continued to penetrate her until he felt a resistance. Fleur's face was flushed with lust and a hint of pain, but she nodded once more and with a buck of his hips, he pushed past her maidenhood and claimed her body as his. She gasped in pain, wincing at the breaking of her hymen. Harry stopped pushing into her and let her recover. She rocked her hips, encouraging him to continue.

Careful to minimise her pain, Harry thrust slowly until he was buried fully inside of her. Fleur's breathing was ragged and he lowered his head to kiss her tenderly, not moving any more until he was sure she was fine. She ground her hips against his, letting out a moan of ecstasy as she did so, giving him the signal to continue. They rocked slowly against each other, his hands caressing her sides, while her hands mapped the contours of his back and chest. The warmth of her around him was getting too much for him and Harry soon found his second climax approaching.

He took longer thrusts in and out of her, eliciting louder moans from her. Fleur began bucking her hips against him as well, her legs tightening around his waist as her own orgasm neared. With a final thrust, they went over the edge together as Harry spilled himself inside of her, their hands clasping around each other's, fingers intertwined.

Harry collapsed beside her and she giggled girlishly when he planted a kiss on her forehead, pulling her closer to him. She threw a leg across his hips and an arm across his chest, using his shoulder as a pillow while his arm snaked around her back and came to rest on her waist. "Thank you, Harry. That was wonderful."

His free hand took the hand on his chest and held it tightly. "Thank you as well, Fleur, for giving me something so beautiful. I want to fall asleep like this every night for the rest of my life."

She lifted her head to meet his eyes. "Is that a proposal?"

"Do you accept?"

"Not until you get a ring!" She chuckled. "I'm sure I'll say yes when you do, though."

8-8-8

The sun was hitting his face when he awoke the next morning. Opening his eyes, Fleur's silvery blonde hair was the first thing he saw as she continued to sleep, curled up against him. They had turned in the middle of the night, so she had gone from sleeping on his shoulder to spooning against him.

He planted a trail of kisses along her shoulder and neck, rousing her slowly from her sleep. She smiled prettily when she opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him. "That's a sight to wake up to." She murmured affectionately, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. He planted one more kiss on her lips, which turned into a morning snog.

She rolled around so she was lying on her back and Harry positioned himself over her as they continued to kiss. When her leg brushed against his morning condition, however, he was reminded of what they had done last night. He had heard enough of the off colour conversations in the boys' dormitory to know that Fleur was probably sore from their exertions.

"Are you alright?" He asked tenderly. He had tried his best to be gentle with her last night, although he was just as inexperienced as she was. The last thing he wanted was to have hurt her during their coupling when she had entrusted her body to him.

"A little sore, but no worse than the training we've been through." She answered with a grin, planting another peck on his lips. "We need to get up or I might ignore that and make you ravish me."

His groin twitched in response to her comment, demanding that he ignore her words and make her scream his name once more. He suppressed the urge and peeled himself away. Fleur sat up and her hand brushed against his erection, gripping it lightly. "I see that might a little difficult to do right now." She joked as she moved down his body until he could feel her breath against his member.

"If you're still sore…" He began to protest, but her tongue covering his tip in her saliva silenced him completely.

"My tongue isn't." She smirked as she took him in her mouth. Despite the fact that they were both virgins before last night, the Veela was eager to please him. _I am the luckiest man alive right now._ He thought as her tongue swirled around his cock, experimenting and exploring his sweet spots. Her fingers wrapped lightly around the base of him and she began gently stroking him towards his climax while her mouth tended to the remaining length of his penis.

It didn't take long for him to spend himself inside her mouth once more, his cock growing flaccid as she moaned at the taste of him, savouring it and swallowing his cum. She moved back up to kiss him, but he sat up and embraced her instead, planting kisses along her jawline before meet her lips. "Now we really need to get out of bed before you test my resolve further, woman!" He insisted with a laugh. "You're going to be the death of me."

Fleur entered the bathroom first, giggling as she shut Harry out. He groaned in mock protest, though he knew that had she allowed him in, they would be leaving Tonks alone for breakfast, possibly till lunchtime.

8-8-8

"I'd ask you how everything went last night, but the looks on your faces just answered that question." Tonks teased as the two of them sat down for breakfast. Both of them blushed, thankful that Tonks had started the ribbing before they had put any food in their mouths.

The Metamorphmagus leaned in closer as Harry was biting into his toast and whispered in his ear. "You're getting your _present _from me tonight." He choked on his breakfast, drawing a laugh from Tonks as she patted his back lightly to help him with the discomfort.

"You two are conspiring to do me in, honestly!" He whined as he took a sip of juice and finished the rest of his breakfast quickly before one of them decided to continue their merciless attack on his composure.

"Not until I've had my wicked way with you, mister!" Tonks laughed as she leaned in to kiss him and apologise for her teasing. He accepted it with enthusiasm. "Happy birthday," She wished him as they broke the kiss.

"Oh, and we're going out to celebrate later, I hope you didn't have any plans." Tonks chirped cheerfully. He had almost forgotten that they weren't expected to report for training any longer, and that they had the rest of the week to themselves. His mood soared considerably, even more than he thought possible with the events of the past few hours, as images of spending his birthday with Fleur and Tonks filled his mind.

Fleur and Harry made their back to the bedroom to change into outfits better suited for a day out. She had insisted on dressing him when he haphazardly threw on a simple shirt and jeans. Perhaps it was the result of their love making the night before, but her Veela charms seemed to have a greater effect on him as she dressed him. She gave the impression of the perfect wife, and the wizard's imagination took over from there as he pictured her doing this for the rest of their lives.

She hadn't bothered to ask him to turn around as she changed as well, and he was treated to the sight of her in just her underwear as she picked out a dress to wear. Her pink bra and panties matched her milky white skin perfectly, and he thought she looked sexier in just her underwear than in the nude. It took a great deal of effort to remind himself that she had admitted she was sore from last night and to restrain himself from taking her right there and then.

They met Tonks back out in the hallway and before he could ask where they were going, she threw a Portkey around his neck and he was transported roughly to their destination.

"Harry, he's here!" A familiar voice yelled out as a bushy-haired missile tackled him. He smiled as he saw Ron stumbling out the kitchen and waving at him while Hermione removed herself from him.

"Happy birthday to you, mate!" Ron wished heartily as he stepped forward, still in his pyjamas, and shook Harry's hand. Hermione echoed Ron's wishes as the rest of the Weasleys came to greet him.

The sound of Tonks and Fleur arriving drew everyone's attention. There was murmur of surprise at the French witch's presence, and Harry decided it was better to just get things out of the way. "I think most of you recognise Fleur Delacour. She competed in the Triwizard Tournament. She's, uh, my girlfriend."

"Wait, we thought you and Tonks were… From the way she was…" Hermione began to speak, but it was clear the words she needed were not coming to her. The pink-haired witch stepped forward and took Harry's hand while Fleur took his other.

"Well, you're not wrong, Hermione." Tonks affirmed with a laugh. "I kind of left out the part where Harry has another witch watching over him as well."

A glance at Mrs Weasley told Harry that the woman was going to have a fit soon. The shock was apparently too much for her; even Ron and Hermione were sputtering and trying to find words to say. Though he noted that Ron was drooling while staring at Fleur. He remembered that his best friend had been rather affected by Fleur's allure in their fourth year and had asked her to the Yule Ball in a disastrous display of stupidity.

"I am glad to finally meet the family Harry has been talking so much about. I've heard a lot from Bill of course, while I was working at Gringotts."

He noted a rather bemused expression on her face as she glanced at Ron, though it was hidden well enough that only he and Tonks would know it was there. She apparently remembered his rather clumsy invitation to the Ball as well.

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF MERLIN IS GOING ON?" Mrs Weasley managed to roar when the shock had subsided.

_I guess it was too much to hope for that she'd keep it cool for a while longer._ Harry thought to himself.

8-8-8

**A/N: **_So I finally bit the bullet and finished this chapter. I wanted to include the rest of Harry's birthday in this chapter, but the scene between Harry and Fleur was threatening to give me a heart attack and I don't think I could've handled writing a second one (Tonks has yet to give Harry his "present" as well, after all)_

_Some of you had originally guessed Hawke's (and Nutrix's) secret identities to be James and Lily… I was chuckling when I read your reviews, and I hope you were pleasantly surprised. The mystery behind what Fleur had in the vial has been answered as well._

_Also, a lemon drop goes to _**Monkeymandb **_for pointing out to me that I've been spelling Metamorphmagus wrong for the past 6 chapters._

_I'll try to get another chapter up before 8 March, after which my enlistment in the army will take away a considerable amount of time (I will be confined in camp for the first 2 weeks or so, which sucks)_

_Hope you enjoyed this chapter and once again, a big thank you to all my readers and keep the reviews coming!_


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